Jackson Stakeman

An employee in the Office of Admission smiles as members of USLAC settle in for the sit-in. After 30 hours, President Bennet gave in to their demands and agreed to pay for an increase in wages and benefits for the University’s janitors.

 On the heels of a storm of student rallies and protests, representatives from Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and Initial Contract Services finally agreed on a new contract, which will provide Initial’s contracted janitors with benefits and increased wages. This marked the end of a wave of action by United Student Labor Action Coalition (USLAC) which has been sweeping through campus for the past four months.

The culmination of USLAC’s efforts was a non-violent sit-in at the Office of Admission which began at noon on Tuesday. On Wednesday night, President of the University Doug
Bennet signed an agreement maintaining that he would agree to a code of conduct by April 23. The code, which is based on provisions designated by USLAC, would ensure greater job security for Wesleyan’s contracted workers in the future. 

Members of USLAC agreed to end their sit-in and leave the Admission building under the condition that Bennet follow through with the code.

"It’s satisfying," said USLAC member Martha Paz ’02. "But it’s sad we had to get so drastic and go through so much to get President Bennet to recognize the workers."

Last spring, USLAC began working with Initial’s 29 janitors to obtain their unionization. On Dec. 30 of last year, Initial, in a contract with SEIU, agreed to recognize the unionization of Wesleyan’s janitors. However, until Wednesday, Initial had refused to enter into a new contract with SEIU to guarantee benefits to its employees.

In February, USLAC held a rally demanding that Bennet take immediate action to secure benefits for the janitors by increasing the amount Wesleyan pays to Initial. 15 members of
USLAC met with Bennet in South College where they presented to him the eight points of their code of conduct. The University responded that it would not interfere in the negotiations.

After the rally, delegations from The Students of Color and the janitors themselves went to speak with Bennet, but he refused to meet with either group.

"We had tried to be nice," said USLAC member Abe Walker ’03. "It became a power struggle and President Bennet wasn’t allowing us anything. We felt like we were being ignored, so we wanted to do something that couldn’t be ignored."

At 12:00 on Tuesday, 24 USLAC members marched into the Office of Admission, where they remained increasing in numbers for the next day and a half. At the time, many students were optimistic about the potential results.

"We’re not going to leave until we get the code of conduct signed, or we get arrested," said USLAC member Olivia deBree ’01.

"This could last anywhere from the next two minutes until the end of time," Walker said.

Although some students said they felt bad at the time about inconveniencing the admission staff, most believed that it was necessary for their ends.

"The reason we’re here is that we realized we can shut down a building that’s vital to the school," said USLAC member Krista Hanson ’00. "And admissions is especially [vital] right now."

"I think now [Tuesday afternoon], we’ve been mostly effective in rerouting the whole admissions office," Kagin said.

Tuesday afternoon, USLAC led a rally for support which began in front of the campus center and proceeded to the front of the admission building. While a number of students spoke in suport of USLAC, several janitors also expressed their hopes for the future.

"I hope all the benefits are given that we deserve," said Silvia Villa, who cleans the Nicolson dorms. "Everyone deserves to live a better life, hopefully all the support we’ve brought about will bring about a change." 

A worker for the AFLCIO also came and read an endorsement from its president to the members of USLAC.

Many students who spoke expressed ways in which they felt Wesleyan’s administration could improve itself for the school’s benefit.

"The administration has decided to play the role of a corporation rather than pursuing a moral and ethical behavior towards janitors," Paz said. "Our actions were deemed necessary because the Administration has given us no other options. Wesleyan is an institution of learning, not a corporation. The Administration needs to recognize its role and take responsibility." 

However, according to the University, it was being responsible by waiting to interfere in the negotiations until both groups requested its presence. A statement released by the
university indicates that, "Believing that the negotiations were rightly the responsibility of the employer and the union, Wesleyan refrained from intervening in the process until it
became clear that both parties would welcome a statement asserting our willingness to pay our share of the costs of a new contract."

On Wednesday evening, the University contacted Initial and offered to pay for their share of the new contract. That evening, Initial and SEIU announced that they had reached a
compromise which would grant their workers health care, an increased maximum wage of $9.40 per hour, paid vacations and a one year wage increase period, rather than the longer and less expensive 18 month plan SEIU had initially offered. Under the one year plan, workers who are hired at a starting salary of $6.60 per hour can earn the maximum wage in just one year, rather than 18 months.

Some students believe that the quick contract between SEIU and Initial is an indication that Initial would have welcomed Wesleyan’s interference much earlier.

"In the end it’s Wesleyan that’s paying the money," Kagin said. "And in the end, Initial doesn’t have that much power. The real power person was never Initial, it was the subcontractor. Basically a subcontractor is a way to hide an employer behind his employee."

Nevertheless, Kagin and many other USLAC members were pleased with the outcome of SEIU and Initial’s contract.

"This is really an historical moment," Kagin said. "Bennet has literally gone back on his stance. Wesleyan fully capitulated, it was better than we had hoped for–faster and quicker. In a sense Wesleyan did more than we asked for. All we need now is to get that code of conduct signed… I’m skeptical to say it’s a complete victory until the code of conduct is signed, that’s really the whole thing. Getting the code of conduct signed is what will make the permanent difference."