Victory for 13,000 Janitors!
Tufts Justice for Janitors Campaign
Community members march during the SEIU rally against proposed janitorial cuts on Saturday, May. 16. Photo Credit: Nicholas Pfosi / The Tufts Daily
The contract that covers the almost 200 janitors who maintain the Tufts Medford/Somerville campus is set to expire September 30. Tufts has $1.6 billion in revenue, including $800 million in operating budget and a growing endowment, and tuition continues to rise, yet many janitors haven't seen a raise in decades. Workers, represented by 32BJ SEIU, are fighting for better compensation, affordable family health insurance, more full-time work, and better job security.“All of the workload that was done by two or three people before, it gets done by one or two” Adelaida Colón, a janitor on the campus, told the Tufts Daily.Tufts janitors are overworked and underpaid. It's time for a good contract!#JusticeforJanitors #RaiseAmerica
For a more comprehensive history of the Tufts janitors, click here.Read more about the current campaign in the Tufts Daily and on the SEIU 32BJ website.
Harvard Dining Workers' Contract Fight
Photo: Brian Lang, the president of Local 26, stands alongside HUDS employees during Wednesday's rally on Massachusetts Avenue. LAUREN A. SIERRA via the Harvard Crimson
Harvard University Dining Services workers' contract expires Saturday, September 17. HUDS employees, represented by UNITE HERE Local 26, are fighting for a sustainable yearly income and affordable healthcare.The average HUDS worker earns $21.89/hr, and most support families. According to the MIT Living Wage Calculator, the living wage for 1 adult supporting 1 child in Boston/Cambridge/Newton is $26.87/hr. After months of collective bargaining, workers announced that they are considering a strike dependent on the outcome of these negotiations.
Support HUDS workers by signing the petition:TINYURL.COM/SUPPORTTHESTRIKE
Read more about the campaign:http://www.thecrimson.com/artic…/…/9/13/support-HUDS-strike/https://www.thecrimson.com/article/…/9/8/HUDS-prepares-vote/
A Step Back for Palestinian Workers' Rights and for Israeli Democracy
Statement from Stuart Appelbaum, President of the Jewish Labor Committee:
A new regulation instituted by Justice Minister Shaked undermines Palestinians' rights to sue Israeli employers over abusive and unlawful labor practices. It also further entrenches two unequal sets of laws for Israelis and Palestinians.
Israel's justice minister has recently instituted a new regulation that will undermine the right of Palestinians living in the West Bank who are employed by Israelis - in Israel or the West Bank - to seek legal redress for abusive and unlawful labor practices.
The Jewish Labor Committee opposes this new regulation, explicitly designed by Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked and MK Shuli Moalem-Refaeli, both of the right-wing, pro-settler Habayit Hayehudi party, to prevent Palestinian employees of Israeli businesses from benefiting from Israel's progressive labor laws. We call on the Knesset and Israel's Supreme Court to act forthrightly to defend these workers' just rights to fair labor practices, and nullify the new regulation.
Under the new requirement, non-citizens will be obligated to make a monetary deposit before submitting a lawsuit against an employer in Israeli labor court, unless they can immediately present evidence proving their claim. If they cannot do so, the deposit will be forfeited. Such a measure would primarily affect Palestinians living in the West Bank - most notably those who work on Israeli-owned farms in the Jordan Valley, who will greatly suffer the consequences - by placing a heavy financial burden on those who seek to sue their Israeli employers for labor-law violations. Israeli farmers in the valley, who in the past have been sued for labor law violations, have applauded this new measure.
As an organization that cares about Israel's future as a democratic and progressive society, this matters to us, and should matter to others as well.
In 2007, Israel's Supreme Court ruled in the interest of 30,000 West Bank Palestinians who work for Israeli businesses in the West Bank. Most Palestinians employed by Israelis in settlements became entitled to the protection of Israeli labor law. But this protection is threatened by the new regulation being promulgated by Minister Shaked. Israel's Knesset and/or Supreme Court must act immediately to overturn this regulation, and allow these workers continued access to the same legal protections as their Israeli counterparts.
Two years ago, an investigative report in TheMarker on Palestinian workers in the Jordan Valley revealed that they are denied such basic rights as a pay slip, minimum wage, vacation time and sick days. Also, since there are no written labor contracts, farmers can fire employees at will. Workers who realized that these conditions violate Israeli labor laws have hired lawyers and sued for their rights in Israeli labor courts.
According to MK Moalem-Refaeli, the new regulation will help Jordan Valley farmers combat this "unjust" development.
Justice Minister Shaked, meanwhile, claims that this measure does not require a Knesset review, but it is possible that the Supreme Court will subject this matter to further legal scrutiny.
We strongly oppose this special new regulation. Forcing Palestinian employees of Israeli businesses to jump through hoops to benefit from Israel's generally progressive labor laws is contrary to these workers' basic rights. It will only embitter their lives, providing yet another obstacle to rapprochement between Palestinians and Israelis, and the possibility of serious negotiations toward a viable two-state solution to the conflict.
To do otherwise would be contrary to the fundamental humanitarian needs of these Palestinian workers, and contrary as well to the best traditions of Israel's proud history of advancing the rights of working people - both Jewish and Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel - through its legacy of trade unionism and labor-oriented political parties.
To do otherwise would reinforce a social and political regime in the West Bank that enforces one set of laws for Israelis and another, inferior, set of regulations for Palestinians living in the West Bank.
To do otherwise would further undermine Israel's standing as a democracy and a progressive society, and erode support for Israel in general in the international court of public opinion.
Stand with 13,000 Janitors for a Good Contract
Raise America With Good Jobs Rally
When: September 10 @ 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Where: Parkman Bandstand Boston Commons