Loyola Maroon reports on Sodexo strike, Police action, and new Committee

The campaign for workers' rights was heavily represented in today's edition of the Loyola Maroon. We are glad that the Maroon took notice of the particularly important nature of last week's events:

• Labor strikes in the South are extremely rare, yet happened on our campus.
• Loyola's reaction to Friday's rally and march was nothing short of ideological profiling and was deserving of media attention.
• President Wildes' actions to form a committee overseeing contracting comes as a direct result of pressure students, workers, and community members have directed toward Loyola's administration. 

Access Denied
The Loyola Maroon

By Sam Winstrom Assistant News Editor

Thursday, April 29, 2010

University Police took action to bar a group of protesters from entering the Danna Center April 23.

Patrick Bailey, director of the Loyola University Police Department said the reason protestors were blocked from entering was because of a disruption earlier that day.

“Unannounced, the protesters had grossly disrupted the regular and essential operation of the university, specifically in the Danna Center, by marching in a very large group throughout the Danna Center, beating on buckets, shouting in loud voices and likely providing an atmosphere of intimidation to those who provide and utilize the services there,” Bailey said.

Bailey said he witnessed the event first-hand along with several other officers on duty. The decision to place security around the Danna Center was made by Paul Fleming, the Assistant vice president for Administration.

According to Fleming, protestors were confronted during their demonstration in the Danna Center, but refused to talk to police. ... (Continued)

Another article detailed the Sodexo work stoppage, though a misleading headline overlooks the fifty workers who rallied between Loyola and Tulane.

Few Sodexo workers protest in Peace Quad
The Loyola Maroon

By Jean Paul Arguello Contributing Writer

Thursday, April 29, 2010

Sodexo workers put down their knives and spatulas and picked up a beat as they walked off the job for a daylong labor strike chanting, “What we want? We want change!”

Workers paraded through both Tulane and Loyola campuses, beginning at Bruff Commons and ending outside the Danna Center early Friday morning.

They marched to the beat of a drummer beating on a five-gallon bucket, chanting, “What we want? We want change!”

Sodexo workers voted to protest claims of unfair labor practices, alleging that Sodexo, the foodservice giant employing 379,749 people worldwide, has engaged in intimidation tactics.

Tanya Aquino, Senior Communications Specialist for Service Employees International Union, said workers protested, “to show Sodexo that enough’s enough…They [Sodexo workers] want to be able to exercise their rights freely.”

The SEIU is an international labor union representing 2.2 million workers and is the union vying to represent Sodexo workers worldwide.

Aquino said more than 50 Sodexo employees from both Tulane and Loyola Universities participated in the strike. The vast majority awere from Bruff Commons dining hall on Tulane’s campus. ... (Continued)

A solid article discusses the new committee President Wildes is forming directly in response to student pressure to uphold the mission and values of our institution in University business.

Wildes calls for review of vendor policies

The Loyola Maroon

By Charmaine Jackson Contributing Writer

Thursday, April 29, 2010

Plans to devise a clearer policy for campus vendors is expected for the new school year. 

Recently, the Rev. Kevin Wildes, S.J., sent out a letter to the Loyola community saying he will form a “university-wide committee to review our current policies, along with best practices, for our contracts with vendors.”

He will seek out a diverse group of people to comprise the committee, which will include a representative from the university faculty senate, administrative senate, Student Government Association, Student Bar Association, and the Office of Mission and Ministry. 

“I am asking the committee to review all of our existing policies that govern who we do business with and how they are supposed to conduct business,” Wildes said. 

Tommy Screen, assistant to the president on government relations and a lawyer who once worked on Capitol Hill, was selected by Wildes to chair the committee because of his experience with government regulations.

According to Wildes, the university considered developing a “clear and succinct” business policy for vendors in the past, however, it did not materialize into the policy he is now asking the committee to create. ... (Continued)

Loyola to host "Open forum on Students' Rights to Freedom of Expression"

In direct response to last Friday's events, Loyola is hosting an open forum on students' rights to freedom of expression on our campus.

Monday, May 3, 2010
10:30 - 11:30 AM
Audubon Room - Danna Center

The event is going to be moderated by SGA President Kate Gremillion and features a panel of University representatives  including

• Associate Vice President for Student Affairs Robert Reed
• Associate Provost Dr. Roger White
• SGA Chief Justice Andrew Austermann

All students are invited to hear Loyola's official policies concerning freedom of expression on campus, ask questions about that policy, and hear a detailed account of how that policy was or was not applied to students supporting Sodexo workers last Friday.

This dialogue will only be productive if students come with questions and concerns, so come and bring your friends. This is a chance for Loyola's administrators to hear directly from students, so we cannot pass up our chance to make the student voice clear in support of free expression.

Join the facebook event and invite your Loyola friends.

Students request open dialogue about Friday's events

On April 26, 2010, Chad Carson and I received an e-mail from Robert Reed, Assistant Vice President of Student Affairs. The e-mail requested a meeting with the two of us and "two additional student leaders" of our choosing. The goal of this meeting was to discuss the strike and demonstration that happened on Friday, April 23. His e-mail reads as follows:

From: Robert Reed
To: Chad Carson , Jamie Broussard
Cc: Roger White , Kurt Bindewald
Date: Mon, Apr 26, 2010 at 1:03 PM
Subject: Meeting

Mr. Bindewald, Dr. White, and I would like to meet with both of you to discuss the Sodexo demostrations asap. We are free this afternoon between 4:30 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. and most of the day on Wednesday. Please email a response to me with your availability at your earliest convenience. Feel free to invite two additional student leaders as well.

Your cooperation is appreciated.

Mr. Robert A. Reed
Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs

We responded to the administration by asking for a meeting that is open to the public. We did not want this meeting to happen without the input of the numerous students who participated in Friday's events. This is our response:

From: Jamie Broussard
To: Robert Reed
Cc: Chad Carson , Roger White , Kurt Bindewald
Date: Tue, Apr 27, 2010 at 7:11 AM
Subject: Re: Meeting

Dear Mr. Reed,

Upon reflection, we as students have come to the agreement that this meeting needs to be conducted as an open meeting. There is no clear oversight to explain the way in which Chad and I were selected as the students you contacted. Anyone who was present at the events that occurred on Friday would know that there were more than just four students involved. Since the issues related to Friday's events affect all students at Loyola, it is important for communication about these issues to be as open as possible. Many students, even those who are not involved in the workers' rights campaign, are now concerned about the grounds under which their rights to enter the student center, to attend class, and to purchase meals on their pre-paid meal plans can be taken away. Because of this, this meeting cannot occur behind closed doors.

Throughout the workers' rights campaign this year, students have engaged in discussions with numerous Loyola administrators. Because this issue is growing in its prominence and importance to students, we as a Loyola community need to make dialogue about the treatment of Sodexo workers and the rights that students have to support the workers as open as possible.

In the spirit of openness, honesty, and integrity, we believe that it is necessary for this meeting to occur so that representatives from the entire Loyola community can be involved in this discussion. In addition to this meeting being open to all students, we propose that we also invite representatives from the Faculty Senate, Administrative Senate, Student Government, LUCAP, and The Loyola Maroon.

We would also like to participate in creating the agenda for this meeting and making this agenda public. We think that an effective format for this meeting might mirror the open meetings that took place surrounding the discussion about moving the Center for Intercultural Understanding.

We look forward to moving in the direction of open dialogue between students and the administration.

In Peace,
Jamie Broussard

Robert Reed responded to our e-mail with the following:

From: Robert Reed
To: Jamie Broussard
Cc: Chad Carson , Roger White , Kurt Bindewald
Date: Tue, Apr 27, 2010 at 12:13 PM
Subject: Meeting

Dr. White, Kurt and I will be willing to work with you to plan an open discussion with the Loyola community. We would like to meet with two student representatives, ones that you select from among yourselves, in order to discuss the ground rules for the meeting. We would also like to include Kate Gremillion, as the new president of SGA. Please provide me with a few times so that I can schedule a planning meeting asap.”

Mr. Robert A. Reed

Amanda Williams and Chad Carson will be meeting with Robert Reed, Dr. White, and Kurt Bindewald tomorrow afternoon. We hope that this will be an opportunity to foster open discussion about students' rights to show support for Loyola's contracted workers.

Students wearing pro-union shirts barred from Loyola buildings

Following Friday's rally and march through Loyola's Danna Center, students who were wearing purple shirts emblazoned with "Clean Up Sodexo" were questioned by Loyola Police, ordered to present a Loyola ID, and denied access to the Danna Student Center and Marquette Hall, an academic and administrative building.

Earlier in the day, the Loyola police were behaving sympathetically to the assembled students and workers. A Loyola Police officer remarked that he would allow the day's events to continue so long as all demonstrations were non-violent.  What had happened to change the LUPD's tone?  It seems that Loyola's administration ordered the police to block the doors.  Police Chief Bailey stated that the orders to keep out students wearing pro-union shirts came from Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs Robert Reed. Reed cited the Loyola student handbook which states:

Section 2. II. B. Students and student organizations are free to examine and discuss all questions of interest to them and to express opinions publicly and privately.  They are free to support causes by means which do not disrupt the regular and essential operation of the institution.   In their public expressions or demonstrations, students and/or student organizations speak only for themselves and are bound by standards of conduct published by the University.

Students were told they were not allowed to enter the Danna Center because the Clean Up Sodexo shirt they were wearing amounted to a "disruption" to the "regular and essential operation of the institution."  The police didn't care that the students simply wished to enter the student center that their tuition dollars fund to access the meal plan they have paid for. The student's action's inside the Danna Center were not the concern. The shirt was the sole concern. Loyola police continued enforcing this new policy until approximately 4:00 PM Friday when purple-shirted students were allowed to freely enter the building.

Loyola's new "policy" and actions call into question to what extent Loyola plans on limiting free speech and the freedom of expression in the name of not "disrupting the regular and essential operation" of the university.  The inclusion of the "disruption clause" is no accident. It is intentionally crafted to be used as a tool to silence students and student organizations whose speech on campus is not viewed as welcome on campus. See FIRE's guide to Free Speech on Campus, in particular the section on Private Universities which begins on page 49, for a good summary of the growing trend of private universities cracking down on free speech rights.

The action of denying students entrance into the Danna Center based on their affiliation with pro-union causes, not on their actions, calls into question Loyola's policy of freedom of expression and inquiry.

Finally, keeping union-supporting students out of the Danna Center sends the message that Loyola opposes unionization efforts. This directly contradicts Loyola's position as a neutral body in the unionization process.

50 Sodexo workers on strike at Loyola and Tulane

On Friday, 50 Sodexo workers from Loyola and Tulane walked off their shifts to protest Sodexo's violations of workers' rights.  The workers cited the Unfair Labor Practices they have filed against Sodexo with the National Labor Relations Board including...

• Firing of Miss Terry Shelly, a vocal supporter of unionization
• Surveillance of employees while they discuss unionization or speak with union representatives
• Interrogation and threats from Sodexo management

The National Labor Relations Act protects workers from firings based on strikes over unfair labor practices, so the Sodexo employees cannot be legally terminated for their work stoppage.

Students from Loyola and Tulane arrived on their campuses as early as 5:00 AM to greet workers as they reported to work for their shifts and subsequently joined the picket line.  Students, workers, and union organizers rallied at Tulane and then marched to Loyola's Danna Student Center where they marched through the building waving picket signs, chanting, and encouraging their co-workers to join the strike.  Several workers took off their aprons, donned "Clean Up Sodexo" shirts, and joined the march to Tulane.  The rally moved across Freret Street and in front of Tulane's cafeteria, Bruff Commons.  Students marched into the cafeteria and made a brief loop inside chanting "No Union? No Peace!  No Contract?  No Peace!  No Justice?  No Peace!" before being removed by Tulane police.  The march continued into the Lavin-Bernic Center (LBC).  Police attempted to block the march from entering the food court area but was ultimately thwarted as marchers continued into the area chanting "TIME FOR A WALKOUT." After brief chanting in the seating area, the march moved back outside and in front of Bruff Commons once again.

The workers continued to pull their co-workers into the strike until the end of the business day.  Sodexo resorted to hiring temporary workers (reportedly at $22/hour) to staff the food service areas.  Bruff was reduced to serving pound cake for breakfast because they had no cook staff.

The striking workers ended the day empowered and energized to continue the struggle for equity and justice in their workplace.

Sodexo sued by Union-Busting Firm

We've known from the start that Sodexo executives like Tom Mackall, Sodexo's Vice President for Employee & Corporate Relations, cannot be taken at their word when they say Sodexo "categorically ... recognizes and respects [its] workers rights to join a union or not join a union."  It is an outright lie.

In addition to the mounting evidence of illegal firings of pro-union workers, intimidation, and threats, Sodexo is being sued by the union-busting firm Adams, Nash & Haskell, Inc.for copyright infringement! ANH claims Sodexo has been using its anti-union materials without attribution or compensation.  Sodexo has been caught red-handed with the union-busting playbook.

More details are on the Clean Up Sodexo campaign site here.

Sodexo sends a form letter to Maroon

The chief Public Relations executive from Sodexo, Alfred King, sent a form letter to the Loyola Maroon that mirrors the rhetoric of Sodexo's open letter to SEIU's Andy Stern: denial of union busting, denial of poor working conditions, assertions of intra-union conflict as the driving force behind SEIU's campaign.  Perhaps Sodexo should spend more time listening to workers' complaints and less time running their propaganda in student newspapers.

Sodexo speaks out in self defense
The Loyola Maroon
Thursday, April 22, 2010

Dear Editor:

Sodexo proudly serves students at local public schools and universities in New Orleans. Lately, we’ve come under attack from the Service Employees International Union. SEIU is organizing student and employee activity on the campuses of Tulane and Loyola Universities based on false allegations about our business. The New Orleans community deserves an accurate picture of Sodexo.

SEIU is competing with other unions, including UNITE HERE, to organize various sectors of the labor force. SEIU’s actions in New Orleans are part of a smear campaign to force Sodexo to deal with the SEIU to the exclusion of other unions.

SEIU’s allegations are directed at Sodexo in the context of their inter-union fight. These issues are not about either Tulane or Loyola.

Sodexo is a great place to work, and was recognized this year as one of Fortune’s Most Admired Companies, World’s Most Ethical companies by Ethisphere and Working Mother’s best companies for hourly workers. We’re proud of these and other honors because our employees are critical to our success...  (Continued)

Loyola's Terry Shelly arrested at Sodexo protest

12 people were arrested as they committed an act of civil disobedience by trespassing onto the property of Sodexo's Maryland headquarters.  Among the demonstrators arrested were SEIU's Andy Stern, actor Danny Glover, and Terry Shelly, a former Loyola Sodexo employee who was fired for vocally supporting unionization.

• Danny Glover arrested at demo against France's Sodexo (AFP)
• Actor Danny Glover, 11 others arrested in Md. (AP)
• Andy Stern: "Beautiful day to get arrested" (WSJ)
• 12 arrested at protest of campus dining giant Sodexo (HuffPost)

Terry Shelly, pictured third from left

President Wildes announces committee on labor

The following email was sent by Loyola's President Kevin Wildes, S.J. via campus-wide email to announce the creation of a new committee to address workers' rights on campus. 

From: Kevin Wildes (wildesk@loyno.edu)

To: student (student@loyno.edu)

Date: Mon, April 19, 2010 at 10:23 AM

Subject: Sodexo update

Dear members of the Loyola University community, 

In recent weeks there has been a lot of campus discussion about our contract with Sodexo and the efforts of the Service Industry Employee Union to organize the Sodexo workers. 

On this issue, I remain committed to the position that the workers are free to unionize if they so choose. In January, Dr. Petty, vice president for student affairs and associate provost wrote: “As a Catholic, Jesuit university, Loyola recognizes the right of employees to organize. Whatever Sodexo and its employees decide to do regarding collective bargaining, the university will support them in their decision.” I remain committed to that position. 

The discussions of the past few weeks have helped me to see that we need to have a clear, succinct policy on the business practices of our vendors. As a Catholic and Jesuit institution, we are committed to providing fair and competitive compensation packages and working conditions for all university employees and full-time contract workers who provide services on our campuses. While we can and do carefully monitor wages and working conditions for our employees, we do not have a clear policy framework for all the companies with which we do business. 

I am establishing a university-wide committee to review our current policies, along with the best practices, for our contracts with vendors. I will ask the University Faculty Senate, the Administrative Senate, the Student Government Association, and the Student Bar Association each for a representative to serve on the committee. The committee will also have a representative from the Office of Mission and Ministry. I have asked Tommy Screen, my assistant for government relations, to chair the committee. 

I will ask them to work, next year, to develop a clear articulation of our current policies and make recommendations to me for areas that are not covered. I will review the recommendations and make whatever decisions are necessary to move us forward. 

Several of the students who raised questions about Sodexo pointed to the example of Georgetown University which has developed a clear policy for their vendors. Indeed they have. The process to develop that policy took almost a year of careful study and dialogue. But it has left the university in a better place with its vendors. I think that this exercise will leave Loyola in a better place aligned with your identity and mission and I want to thank those, particularly the students, who raised this question for us.

With prayers and best wishes,

Kevin Wm. Wildes, S.J., Ph.D.

President

Engaging via facebook

I decided to tag President Wildes in my facebook status asking for a response to our letter.

"President Kevin Wildes of Loyola University received in excess of 755 emails and faxes over the past week demanding he take action to protect workers' rights on his campus. Looking forward to a public response that puts Loyola among the elite group of universities that actively protect the dignity of their campus workers" -April 18 at 8:59 PM

UPDATE (04/26/10): I was finally unfriended on facebook by President Wildes.  :-(

Students write President Wildes, demand labor code & first right of recall

Students wrote to President Kevin Wildes, S.J. today to demand that Loyola takes a stance in support of workers' rights on our campus.  The administration has made clear their stated policy as articulated by Vice President M.L. "Cissy" Petty that, "as a Catholic, Jesuit university, Loyola recognizes the right of employees to organize. Whatever Sodexo and its employees decide to do regarding collective bargaining, the university will support them in their decision."  

Loyola has made a conscious effort to avoid entering the ongoing dispute between Sodexo and its employees.  The administration has stood by while Sodexo has fired pro-union workers, intimidated its employees, and engaged in surveillance all in violation of federal law.  The students have decided that it is time for Loyola to ensure that campus workers have a truly free and neutral environment in which they can made decisions regarding unionization. That requires Loyola to take active steps to ensure that neutrality can exist on campus. Loyola University has failed to recognize that neutrality is not the same as passivity.

The students wrote in their letter that they have two demands:

1. Loyola must address the ongoing abuses of campus workers' rights by implementing the provided Campus Labor Code of Conduct by the start of the Fall 2010 academic year.
2. In order to protect the currently employed Sodexo workers at Loyola, President Wildes must encourage Sodexo to adopt a "first right of recall" policy whereby all workers currently employed by Sodexo will be given first preference when rehiring workers in the Fall.

A student hand-delivered the following documents to President Wildes as he was walking through the Peace Quad.  To ensure delivery, they were also emailed to President Wildes.

• A letter calling Loyola's administration to protect workers' rights
• A petition with over 600 student signatories supporting the rights of campus workers to organize without intimidation
• A Campus Labor Code of Conduct 

We await a response from the President.