4/4 RALLY!

Below is the full text of the statement read by Philip Agnew, which was sent by Arthenia L. Joyner, FL State Senator (D), District 19, in commemoration of the 45th anniversary of the death of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and in support of the UM food workers: 

Almost half a century ago, it was a different group of working people, in a different Southern city, all of them on a quest that drove countless groups of people before them and drives each of you here today.

And so it’s somehow fitting that as we mark the 45th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King’s assassination, we do so by rallying to support the food court workers at the University of Miami and their struggle to change the miserly wages they’re paid – just as Dr. King did on April 3, 1968, on behalf of sanitation workers in Memphis.  

Forty five years ago, on the eve of his death, Dr. King spoke to those workers, all those men underpaid, unappreciated, disrespected, and disavowed the full worth of a human being.  

To that sea of tired but determined faces, many of them donning signs defiantly proclaiming: “I am a Man!” he said to them: We are determined to be people. We are saying that we are God’s children. And that we don’t have to live like we are forced to live.”  

So today, here in Florida, I say to the workers at the University of Miami, the ones who want nothing more than a fair wage for a fair day’s work and the dignity that comes with that recognition, and to all their supporters: “March on!” Because to tolerate discrimination against one group is to open the door to discrimination against the next, until we are all swept up in second class status we have fought so hard to overcome.  

They may try to retaliate against you, they may rail against your cause, they may even curse you, but they cannot ignore you because we will stand with you.  

And so, on this 45th anniversary of Dr. King’s death, let us reaffirm his words, let us reaffirm his dream, and let us “rise up tonight with a greater readiness. Let us stand with a greater determination. And let us move on in these powerful days, these days of challenge to make America what it ought to be.

Motion for the Faculty Senate

Today, the General Welfare Committee of the UM Faculty Senate unanimously approved putting the following motion on the agenda to go before the full Senate on April 17th:

WHEREAS workers employed on campus as food service workers by Chartwells make on average only $9.50 per hour while workers employed on campus as janitors and groundskeepers by UNICCO make on average $11.55 per hour;  

WHEREAS Miami‐Dade county considers a living wage to be $12.06 per hour;  

WHEREAS the University of Miami is one of the largest private employers, if not the largest, in Miami‐Dade county;  

BE IT RESOLVED that the Faculty Senate urges the administration a) to affirm the importance of ensuring that all workers on campus are paid a living wage, as defined by the county; and b) to support a fair and fast resolution to workers’ efforts to improve their wages and working conditions.

At that point, assuming it passes, it will be sent by the Senate officially to President Shalala.

Cornel West sends special message of support

The eminent intellectual Cornel West, who gave an impromptu plea on behalf of Chartwells workers on the occasion of his visit to UM last year, just sent a special message of support today:

I wholeheartedly support my brothers and sisters of the University of Miami food service workers on this day where we remember what Martin gave his life for, we must seek justice for working people. Stay strong and stand tall! Love, Cornel West.

Thank you Dr. West!

And here is the video of his visit in February 2012:

Petition from 205 (and counting) faculty at UM is delivered to President Shalala's office

Today, at noon, Simon Evnine, Philipp Schwind, Tim Watson, Linda Belgrave, Gina Maranto, and Pat McCarthy went to deliver to President Shalala a petition signed by 205 faculty members, asking the university to support the Chartwells workers in their fight for a fair wage and for justice and dignity. President Shalala was out of the country unavailable [the original wording was a mistake by the writer of this post, for which we apologize], but her personal assistant received the petition and we impressed upon her how much we would like to meet with the President to talk about our concerns. The text of the petition, and a list of signatories (updated all the time), is here.

And here are some photos of the event:

Opinion piece by Simon Evnine in Miami Hurricane

An opinion piece by philosophy professor Simon Evnine appears in today's Miami Hurricane (the student newspaper of the University of Miami). The full text of the editorial, which appears in the newspaper in shortened form, is here:

Pursuing Justice: Chartwells, the University, and the Union 

In today’s globalized world, our social relations with other people are sometimes simple, sometimes hidden and complex, and sometimes both at once, in different ways. You relate simply and directly to the Chartwells food service workers when you buy a sandwich or a cup of coffee at many places on campus (including the dining facilities in the residence halls). You may see them on a regular basis, know their names, smile and chat with them. But you are also connected to these same people via a complex set of relations you probably hardly think about. The very people who put food in your hands are the employees of a company, Chartwells, that, in turn, is employed by the University of Miami to provide these services. And you are part of UM. 

These workers with whom you interact on a daily basis are paid, on average, $9.50 per hour. This is well below what Miami-Dade county determines is a ‘living wage.’ For a single adult, a living wage is considered to be $12.06 per hour. Since campus food service workers are furloughed when classes are not in session, and since they have had their hours cut back in a move by Chartwells to squeeze the same work from them for less money, many of them make around $10,000 a year. In other words, your friendly food service workers on campus are paid poverty wages. To try and improve their pay and working conditions, a majority of these workers have officially signified their desire to join a union. Chartwells, however, is refusing to respect this choice. 

Regrettable as you may find this, you may well be asking yourselves what it has to do with UM, and hence with you. Is this not a matter between Chartwells and its employees alone? Well, imagine that your drain is blocked and you need a plumber. The various plumbers you consider employing all have their assistants. Suppose that some of those plumbers mistreat and underpay those assistants while others do not. While you will obviously be concerned with the cost to you and the quality of the work, is there anything that obliges you, in making your choice, to ignore how a plumber treats his or her assistant? Will you be indifferent to witnessing an abusive relationship as they work on your sink? Or will you make a mental note to find a different plumber next time? The fact that you don’t employ the assistant directly doesn’t make it any easier to be an accessory to their abuse by employing the plumber who abuses them. As a human being, you have all sorts of views about the kind of world you wish to live in, all sorts of conceptions about your moral responsibilities for trying to bring fairness, justice, and dignity to your fellows. Why should any of these ideals disappear just because you are making an economic decision? 

You are the University of Miami. And the University of Miami, through its students, its faculty, and its administrators, believes in fairness, justice, and dignity for all. These values, as they apply to your friendly food service workers, cannot be segregated and excluded by the University just because it does not employ those workers directly. The university can and should make known to Chartwells the value it places on allowing those who work here to pursue the legal means at their disposal to remedy, as quickly as possible, the poverty wages and other workplace problems they face.

Pastor Marvin says "Chartwells, Donna Shalala, do what's right!"

The Miami Herald covers today's press conference by faith leaders

A good piece in the Miami Herald about today's press conference given by local faith leaders at UM, in support of the Chartwells workers. A letter signed by 55 local church leaders was delivered to President Shalala (the president did not meet with the clergy).

Hearing our voices: Miss Betty says what it's all about for her

Faith leaders' press conference: No more poverty wages

Today (April 2nd) faith leaders said WeCaneDoBetter by standing with University of Miami Janitors and Cafeteria workers. No more poverty wages at University of Miami.

    

Pastor Vernon Gillum to give press conference

...on UM campus at noon today (April 2nd) to speak out on behalf of the Chartwells food service workers. Here he explains why.