Subcontractor employers, including Marsden Building Maintenance and ABM, refuse to discuss real solutions for affordable health care for janitors and their families, union members said.

"Affordable health care has been our most important issue from the beginning," said Harold Ullman, a janitor who works for MSI and is a member of SEIU Local 26. "We are ready and willing to work with our employers to make health care affordable, but we want to talk real solutions."

Because family health insurance premiums can be as high as $1,800 per month, only about one-quarter of members take health insurance through their employers. And because about half of janitors are part-time, they are not eligible for benefits at all, including health insurance.

"This isn\'t just about us -- affordable health care is important to everyone in our community and our state," said Safia Abdi, an employee of Marsden Building Maintenance. "We want to do what\'s right, and that means standing up for better health care for janitors and our families."

Contract discussions between members of SEIU Local 26 and cleaning subcontractors ended Friday without a tentative agreement. A final offer by the Minneapolis-St. Paul Service Contractors Association was proposed before any discussion of the janitors\' family health care proposal.

While the Contractors Association has proposed minimal increases in their contribution to employee health care, SEIU Local 26 proposed to allow janitors the option of signing up with an SEIU national health care trust that provides affordable health care and is tailored to the needs of low-wage workers, including preventive care and cost control measures.

"We can no longer afford to sit idly by as companies like Marsden and ABM share in the wealth of the good economy, but fail to pass that wealth onto their employees," said Javier Morillo, president of SEIU Local 26. "It\'s time to decide what kind of state we want to live in. This isn\'t just about janitors, or just about SEIU members. This is about affordable health care for everyone."