Comments on: Tufts University Janitors and Their Current Struggle http://www.somervillevoices.org/2008/05/16/health-care/tufts-university-janitors-and-their-current-struggle/ An independent, open forum for reports and opinions about life in our city. Wed, 28 Jul 2010 14:14:31 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: Kevin Dillon http://www.somervillevoices.org/2008/05/16/health-care/tufts-university-janitors-and-their-current-struggle/comment-page-1/#comment-101 Kevin Dillon Mon, 19 May 2008 13:52:25 +0000 http://www.somervillevoices.org/?p=114#comment-101 Hi Greg. Thank you for your support. Few colleges in the area have respectable relationships with their janitors. Following in Tufts' footsteps, most colleges in Boston outsourced their janitors, which caused the workers to lose their status as actual members of the college community (a status that virtually every other person contributing to the college has). Harvard is the only university I'm aware of that still employs its own janitors. Consequently, these janitors are some of the best compensated janitors in the area. So while Harvard's janitors receive decent compensation, this problem of outsourcing has become endemic throughout the Boston area. The union is able to accomplish little on its own due to current labor laws, which is why community support is critical for any progress. Hi Joeb. I would be very interested in attending the June 6th meeting. Where is it at and what time? If it's easier, you can email me at Kevin.Dillon@tufts.edu. And thank you for your support. Hi Greg. Thank you for your support. Few colleges in the area have respectable relationships with their janitors. Following in Tufts’ footsteps, most colleges in Boston outsourced their janitors, which caused the workers to lose their status as actual members of the college community (a status that virtually every other person contributing to the college has). Harvard is the only university I’m aware of that still employs its own janitors. Consequently, these janitors are some of the best compensated janitors in the area. So while Harvard’s janitors receive decent compensation, this problem of outsourcing has become endemic throughout the Boston area. The union is able to accomplish little on its own due to current labor laws, which is why community support is critical for any progress.

Hi Joeb. I would be very interested in attending the June 6th meeting. Where is it at and what time? If it’s easier, you can email me at Kevin.Dillon@tufts.edu. And thank you for your support.

]]> By: Joeb http://www.somervillevoices.org/2008/05/16/health-care/tufts-university-janitors-and-their-current-struggle/comment-page-1/#comment-98 Joeb Sun, 18 May 2008 21:07:18 +0000 http://www.somervillevoices.org/?p=114#comment-98 This is the first time in memory we've heard from a progressive from within the Tufts community! There is a meeting on D-Day, the 6th of June, to renegotiate the Memorandum of Understanding the University has with the city's non-profit community, outlining mutual benefits between students and their agency "partners," and the readiness of the university to compensate those partners for helping with undergraduate social and cultural awareness. Since I currently pay one-twentieth of what the University pays-in-lieu-of-taxes, and a lot more in federal and state taxes (which regularly fund university research that ought to be supported by that same endowment), this is a great argument for some solidarity. When Tufts pays taxes and pays its workers, they can be considered really members of the Somerville community. Their students are always welcome, but as neighbors and not as representatives of a remarkably insensitive, provincial and isolated college bureaucracy. This is the first time in memory we’ve heard from a progressive from within the Tufts community! There is a meeting on D-Day, the 6th of June, to renegotiate the Memorandum of Understanding the University has with the city’s non-profit community, outlining mutual benefits between students and their agency “partners,” and the readiness of the university to compensate those partners for helping with undergraduate social and cultural awareness. Since I currently pay one-twentieth of what the University pays-in-lieu-of-taxes, and a lot more in federal and state taxes (which regularly fund university research that ought to be supported by that same endowment), this is a great argument for some solidarity. When Tufts pays taxes and pays its workers, they can be considered really members of the Somerville community. Their students are always welcome, but as neighbors and not as representatives of a remarkably insensitive, provincial and isolated college bureaucracy.

]]> By: Greg http://www.somervillevoices.org/2008/05/16/health-care/tufts-university-janitors-and-their-current-struggle/comment-page-1/#comment-95 Greg Sat, 17 May 2008 23:50:12 +0000 http://www.somervillevoices.org/?p=114#comment-95 Thank you for this information, Kevin. I'll be sending Bacow an email. What can you tell us about the relationship between other local colleges and their janitorial staffs? Are they facing similar issues or is Tufts unique? Thank you for this information, Kevin. I’ll be sending Bacow an email. What can you tell us about the relationship between other local colleges and their janitorial staffs? Are they facing similar issues or is Tufts unique?

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