Coaltion Members
Anti-Displacement Project
Student Coalition for Action
Western Mass Carpenters Union
UAW Housekeepers
Since 2000 MHC students have been asked by various factions of the laborers/ staff at MHC to support them in their grievences and concerns with their working conditions at this college.
We are curently focused on encouraging the community and administration to adopt a Fair Labor Code of Conduct, allowing Mount Holyoke to follow through on its values of social justice and global citizenship.
Labor, Democracy, and MHC: The story In Depth
Frances Perkins Scholar on the Legacy of FP
Brief Time Line
- House keepers approach students with grievances (2000)
- Housekeepers Unionize, frustrated with administrative opposition
- MHC hires contractor CUTLER to build Kendade
- Western Mass Carpenters Union approaches the SCA informing us that workers are being misclassified as independent contractors, undercutting the W. Mass carpentry industry.
- Students, faculty, and workers unite in working for a Fair Labor Code of Conduct (2000)
- SCA collects over 1,300 community signatures in support of code, unanimous support of faculty meeting.
- SCA holds a tent city on the Green for two weeks
- Code is put into the Fair Labor Practices Sub committee under the Multi-cultural Committee for Community Living (MCCL)
- SCA LABOR links from the past
And the story continues . . . .
- Day Laborers and organization the Anti-Displacement Project join the campaign for a Code Conduct
- All coalition members meet with President Creighton to share concerns (April 2003). The president states that a code of conduct was her idea.
- October 15th MCCL announces recommendations for a code after interviewing mostly non-unionized staff, and a campus wide vote is promised
- The Coalition does not approve of the recommendations and plans a vote on a document we feel will do the job
- In December the Vote is called off and the committee does not endorse its own recommendations due to resistance from some staff
- February 2004, students focus on outreach to nonunion staff to clarify miscommunications and gain support. Also signatures are collected from students, faculty, and outsourced workers.
- February 17th 7pm Hooker, Prof Ahmet Tonak to speak on "The (neo-) liberal arts college: are we participating in a national trend of unfair labor practices."
- Febuary 24, 1,200 Ballots collected from staff, students, faculty, and outsourced workers
- February 26th ..Rally on Campus 250+ attend, covered my media, endorsed by Noam Chomsky and Senator Melconian '70.
- Feb. 26 Coalition meets with 3 trustees, Harriet Wiessman, Barbara M. Baumann, and John Woodhouse. Though told last minute only students could attend all factions of the coalition are present. The entire board is presented with an 18 page report.
- Coalition is regularly in the MHC news.
- March 8th, Community is issued a letter by trustees, informing us that the board will "not take action" regarding labor concerns.
- Many in community are out raged that such an important issue is tossed to the side.
- March 12, College Street Journal prints cover story "Q&A with Mary Jo Maydew on Fair Labor issue. She Clearly knows the campaign well but misrepresents the truth.
- March 20th T&F (true and false) with the Fair Labor Coalition is printed on flyers and distributed around campus, correcting Maydew's statements.
- March 27th the homes of two Trustees are visited by two students and a bus load of coalition members on their way to the National People's Action: Carol Geary Schneider and Arleen M. Heiss.
- See FLYER distributed to their neighbors
- The Coalition is Stratigizing its next steps!!! DON"T EXPECT US TO DISAPEAR ANY TIME SOON--NOT UNTIL MHC IS TRUE TO ITS MISSION.
- MORE DETAILS(our old site)
SEE BELOW FOR OUR TRUE AND FALSE WITH THE LABOR COAILTION
!WELCOME PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS!
Sunday, A.18, 9pm Prosective students were initiated into the dream of the MHC to be if Mount Holyoke College was wedded and "partners for Life" with social justice.
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100 Prospective students have asked the Trustees "What
will you do about the abuse of workers on campus
Petition to the
Trustees from Prospectives
"The
only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to
do nothing"
-Edmond Burke
MHC Trustees say they will
take "no action"
in
a March 8 letter to the "community"
THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE
AND
WILL NOT BRING ABOUT AN END TO OUR ACTION
Mount
Holyoke is a well respected Liberal arts school with a commitment
to social
justice,
YET
we fail to uphold this value in many of our labor practices when we use contractors
who:
- ILLEGALLY MISCLASSIFY WORKERS (link to pamphlet)
- USE DAY LABOR PAID UNDER MINIMUM WAGE (links to pamphlet)
- WHEN PARTIES DO NOT REMAIN NEUTRAL
Many of us believe we must seize this opportunity to be leaders in the educational community and fulfill our highest values.
iin response
to the College Street Journal Article, March 12, 2004 with Mary
Jo Maydew the we bring you:
T&F
with the Fair Labor Code Coalition
1.
FALSE.
The campus has been through a long and thoughtful process to consider
whether mount Holyoke wants or need a Fair Labor Code of conduct. All
members of the community have had the opportunity to present their
views.
TRUE.
Actually, although the MCCL fair labor sub committee interviewed many
people on campus over the last several years, a number of important
community members – including Dinning Service
staff, day laborers, and temp workers – were never considered
in the report.
2. FALSE.
Q: How do Mount Holyoke staff members feel about a fair labor code
of conduct?
A: The vast majority of staff have expressed themselves as being opposed
to a Fair Labor Code of Conduct in any form.
TRUE.
First of all, this sentiment is in response to an earlier code put
forth by the MCCL subcommittee – one which differs significantly
from the one that’s currently being proposed. Further more,
our coalition has collected over 1,200 ballots from the community
(including almost 100 from staff) in strong support of the code.
Even in our process not all staff voices were heard because some
departments had specifically prohibited us from speaking with their
employees.
3. FALSE.
However, the college has no control over what organizations who do
business with the college pay their workers. Trying to require
this of organization would simply mean they could not do business
with the college and their behavior would remain unchanged.
The living wage is an issue that is an important public policy issue,
but it is one that cannot be solved by Mount Holyoke College.
TRUE.
As an important player in the Western Mass. economy, and a prestigious
institution which sets an example for colleges and universities
across the country, Mount Holyoke has the opportunity and the responsibility
to be a powerful agent of change.
Of course MHC has control over what contractors do on our campus: it’s
called a CONTRACT. Municipalities set wage standards in contracts all
the time. MHC needs to take the lead on labor standards.
4. FALSE.
A number of allegations
were made about the treatment of workers from Labor Ready, a firm
that supplies day laborers to construction
jobs. The allegations brought to our attention were investigated
and found to be without merit in most instances. In a few instances,
inappropriate behavior (primarily with how individuals were assigned
to jobs) had been identified prior to our investigation and the
individuals responsible had been replaced.
TRUE.
Let’s be explicit – “how individuals were assigned
to jobs” means DISCRIMINATION against WOMEN. The article implies
that Labor Ready resolved these abuses on their own. In fact, it was
ONLY THROUGH DIRECT ACTION by the Anti-displacement Project that the
abuse was investigated at all. Their organization brought a MA state
investigation against Labor Ready and raised the wage of day laborers
on the site to $10 an hour. The Campaign for Fair Labor continues to
build on these successes.
TRUE.
The Fair Labor Code Coalition continues to demand a Fair Labor Code
of Conduct for MHC.
February 26 Rally for Fair Labor Practices at MHC a Success
250+ in attendance
Covered by:
Hampshire daily Gazette: Rally urges
MHC to adopt fair labor code
Springfield Republican: Rally addresses
worker pay
MOHO TV
Reported by:
WFCR radio
Channel 22 news
Later that afternoon, ten members
of the Coalition met with three members
of the Board of Trustees to discuss the future of
a Fair Labor Code of
Conduct for Mount Holyoke College. MORE
.
RALLY Thursday Feb. 26 12:15
Blanchard Ctr. Speakers
include: concerned students, faculty and staff, day laborers,and
misclassification workers .
. !ALL WELCOME! contact: sca@ifairtrade.net, 413.493.4887 |
The Labor Coalition has proposed an
Employer Code of Conduct
SEE FULL TEXT
The Ballot
that 1,200 commuity member signed
Student Coalition for Action Meetings: Every
Thursday 9pm, Mead Living room Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley
MA, USA.
Contact: sca@ifairtrade.net
The (neo-) liberal arts college: How we participate in the national trend of unfair labor practices Join us for a lecture and discussion with Professor Ahmet Tonak of Simons Rock College Tuesday,
February 17 |
Columbia
House installed 2 months after site's creation