Union: Strike barely averted

By Troy Simpson

Union representatives for campus facilities employees and administrators came to a contract agreement last Friday, just days before a strike.

"We stuck it out. We were ready to strike. I had my car filled with picket signs in my trunk just ready to go whenever we had to," said Service Employees International Union Local 715 Worksite Organizer Leah Berlanga.

When asked how much of a chance the negotiations had of concluding without an agreement, Berlanga said it was close.

"We had packed up our stuff. We were ready to go. I had my computer and we were out the door, and the mediator said, 'Wait, wait, I think I can talk to (the administrators) and let them know how serious you are - and that the next time they're going to see your face is when you're striking,'" Berlanga said.

Members of SEIU and students gathered between the Multicultural Center and the campus bookstore hours later in celebration of the settlement. SEIU members from around the South Bay were also in attendance.

The final contract, awaiting ratification by union members later this week, came after months of negotiations, the key stumbling point being whether or not management would guarantee the size of the custodial and non-custodial bargaining unit in Santa Clara's facilities department.

Since 2000, the facilities department's custodial unit has dropped from 40 to 19 employees. In that time, Santa Clara increased its use of contracted employees from Diversified Maintenance Services, an independent company that supplies janitorial workers.

If ratified, the new contract will state that Santa Clara will employ a minimum of 40 non-custodial employees and a minimum of 16 custodial workers in the bargaining unit, Berlanga said.

"The number to us was important because in the event of a layoff, when times got better, they would have to stay true to that number," Union Steward Ray Menchaca said.

Assistant Vice President for Human Resources Molly McDonald emphasized that no employees were ever fired or laid off in order to contract positions out to DMS, but said she could not go into any specific detail about the contract until members of the union decide to officially endorse it.

In addition to the minimum number of positions, the new contract will state that if Santa Clara creates additional positions to compensate for newly constructed residence halls or facilities, those positions will be added to the campus bargaining unit, Berlanga said.

Another hot-button issue centered around employees' complaints of cleaning bathrooms of the opposite gender, which they argued created uncomfortable situations for both workers and students. Workers will now have contract language specifying that they are not required to clean bathrooms in such situations, Berlanga said.

Since negotiations began in January, many employees and students staged rallies on and off campus, voicing concerns about the job security of Santa Clara employees and noting the disparities in wages and benefits offered to DMS workers compared to Santa Clara facilities employees.

Berlanga said Santa Clara facilities employees currently make anywhere from $12.92 to $16.99 per hour in addition to receiving a comprehensive benefits package, which, in addition to medical, dental, life and long-term disability insurance, includes the option for employees, along with their spouses and children, to attend Santa Clara courses for free.

She said, however, that with the new contract, employees will receive a three percent raise on July 1 of this year as well as on Feb. 1 of both 2005 and 2006.

DMS employees' contract with SEIU Local 1877 stipulates that they make anywhere from $8.04 to $10.40 per hour, according to SEIU Regional Vice President Salvador Bustamante. However, Vice President for University Operations Joe Sugg said in an interview last month that Santa Clara requires DMS to pay its employees a minimum of $10.40 per hour.

While DMS employees do have a comprehensive benefits package, they do not receive the tuition remission program offered to campus employees, nor does Santa Clara directly manage their work or guarantee their employment, Bustamante said.

While many at Friday's campus celebration applauded the agreement, there was still some discomfort about why Santa Clara administrators came to the decision they did.

"I would say it was a good thing, but I want to stress that the workers were the ones who brought this decision through putting pressure on the university continuously," senior Blair Thedinger said. "It was not out of any good will or commitment to social justice. It was because the workers showed them a way and they went out and they got help from the various groups and students,

Senior Ellen Ritchie said that even Santa Clara seems to struggle to meet the standards of social justice in the modern business world.

"I think it shows that we have a long way to go in living up to higher standards. I wouldn't put Santa Clara down; this is a struggle that's going on everywhere. It's not like it's just Santa Clara having bad policies for its workers. This is the way our system works, but I think that with our rhetoric and with the values that we preach, we should hold ourselves to higher standards," Ritchie said.

The decision to guarantee the minimum number of facilities employees contradicts a statement made by university President Paul Locatelli, S.J., earlier this month.

In a letter to the Faculty Senate Council and Staff Assembly Council members obtained by The Santa Clara, Locatelli said that guaranteeing the size of the facilities staff would not be possible.

"We see that as an unrealistic demand especially in light of the unknown economic climate and the needs of the University over the next three years and beyond," Locatelli stated.

û Contact Troy Simpson at (408) 554-4546 or tsimpson@scu.edu.