There are many reasons that the Tufts community-students, faculty, staff, and grad students-should care about the problematic labor standards Tufts practices. The current structure validates a racist, classist, and sexist system, which effects us all whether we realize it, or not. Tufts pride's itself on its openness and respect of diversity. It attempts to sell an image of fairness and active citizenship.
In fact, the Tufts University College of Citizenship and Public Service declaration statement asserts, "We, the undersigned, are deeply concerned about the current state of our democracy. We live in a largely affluent society in which the majority of members may never be exposed to the hunger, poverty, and disenfranchisement still suffered by many of our own citizens; in which the pursuit of individual liberty and prosperity has overshadowed the importance of community and citizen participation in advancing the common good."
Yet in its own case, Tufts chooses to be selectively amnesiac, ignoring the fact that they themselves are causing the poverty they pay lip service to eradicate. No matter what Tufts says about ethics and breaking the collective-bargaining agreement, the university can change their contract with the workers at any time it wants,
In fact, just this summer they changed their contract with One Source, switching from a 5 to a 4-day cleaning schedule in administrative offices, causing lay-offs and hour cuts. According to Boston branch president of One Source, Chris Fallon, Tufts can lay off the whole firm on thirty days notice if they wish. So if they can break collective bargaining for the worse as we've seen them do just recently, than they can certainly break it for the better.
Tufts say the are looking into the issue but actions speak louder than words, and Students Labor Action Movement (S.L.A.M.), after months of meeting with the administration, has not seen a single step to prove Tufts really cares about the workers.
Any member of our community that claims they do not care, have no stance on the issue, or do not want to participate in changing the horrific labor practices on this campus, is not actually remaining neutral, but is accepting and actively promoting a system that destroys hard working people's lives. Why is that so? Because every cent you pay or earn for this school, should be contested. If you are not active in deciding where your money goes, then you are active in saying you promote the activities
You would rather have fireworks at commencement that cost thousands, and ugly black wire fencing around the dorms that cost tens of thousands of dollars, than you would pay the workers who clean your dorms, office buildings, classrooms, and public spaces decent wages, or give them sick days since they currently have none, or give their families health insurance, or help them attain job security. That is what you are saying if you do not actively argue Tufts' employment practices.
But theory aside, every single person in this community should be outraged at because our janitors work hard, doing back breaking jobs for us, and are treated like trash. It is taken for granted that the toilets will be clean after we threw up in them, or our office trash, overflowing with students poorly written rough draft papers will be taken out daily, our hallways cleaned, our cafeterias, usable.
Janitors have the highest rate of heart attacks for any employment field because their labor is physically grueling, and the recent trend towards saving money at the expense of workers lives has found fewer and fewer custodians doing more and more work as their numbers are slashed and depleted. With no job security, our custodians could be laid-off at any time within a thirty-day warning, but that doesn't mean there is less work to do.
When working conditions change on this campus, it is essential that one of the rules in effect during those changes be a bettering of standards for everyone, not just 130 custodians, as 40 are laid-off. All 170 janitors currently working now must be given the respect and working conditions they deserve, with no hour cuts or lay-offs of any type. We cannot cut corners when it means our very own community members will suffer.
Next time you wake up for class and one of our amazing custodians is taking out the trash; try looking them in the eye instead of averting eye contact as you condescendingly walk by. Look them in the eye and say hello, and thank you, and get to know them, and then honestly tell me that they don't deserve a better living for who they are and what they do for this campus.
