Twin Cities janitors will vote this weekend on a tentative agreement reached after a marathon bargaining session with cleaning contractors that ended early Monday.
At a news conference Monday afternoon, a visibly tired negotiating committee for Service Employees International Union Local 26 briefed reporters on the contract, which President Javier Morillo said contained a 12.3 percent wage increase over four years and landmark language to address workload concerns.
The janitors credit two actions – a 24-hour unfair labor practice strike on Feb. 17 and the arrest of 11 workers on Feb. 25 for engaging in peaceful civil disobedience at U.S. Bank headquarters – for helping to spur a settlement. They also said support from allies and the community was important.
The contract covers 4,000 janitors employed by several Twin Cities cleaning companies.
“This was a hard fight, but we were fighting for a better life for our families and a step forward on rolling back racial disparities in our state, and the bargaining team is so proud of the final result that we are bringing back to the full membership,” said Brahim Kone, a janitor from St. Paul and leader on the bargaining team.
Details of the settlement:
Largest janitorial wage increases in more than 20 years
- Over 60% of all janitors will immediately get raises to over $15/hour
- All full-time janitors will receive raises of $.50, $.50, $.40, $.40
- Full-timers will reach $16.42 by the end of the 4-year contract, a 12.3% increase from current wages
- Part-timers will receive the same 12.3% increase
New workload protections
- Worker-centered enforcement through worksite reviews and walkthroughs of janitor’s workloads
- A groundbreaking professional study through the University of Minnesota on the workload problems in worksites, developed through an industry-wide committee
Expanded benefits
- For the first time, part-time janitors will receive full healthcare benefits and will have paid sick days
- Healthcare benefits improved for full-time janitors
Other wins
- Janitors won a “just cause” clause for the first time, which means they cannot be fired without reason
- Company must make “good faith effort to accommodate" workers who want to take New Years Eve or Eid off from work on paid time
- Protections of benefits when buildings switch contractors
- A better process for accessing earned vacation time
“Winning new policies about workload, including walkthroughs with union stewards and a plan to do a worker-centered third-party study about the real challenges facing janitors so we can end this workload crisis once and for all, are huge wins for janitors and our families,” said Lucia Guaman, a janitor who works for Harvard cleaning RBC Plaza in Minneapolis.
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Twin Cities janitors will vote this weekend on a tentative agreement reached after a marathon bargaining session with cleaning contractors that ended early Monday.
At a news conference Monday afternoon, a visibly tired negotiating committee for Service Employees International Union Local 26 briefed reporters on the contract, which President Javier Morillo said contained a 12.3 percent wage increase over four years and landmark language to address workload concerns.
The janitors credit two actions – a 24-hour unfair labor practice strike on Feb. 17 and the arrest of 11 workers on Feb. 25 for engaging in peaceful civil disobedience at U.S. Bank headquarters – for helping to spur a settlement. They also said support from allies and the community was important.
The contract covers 4,000 janitors employed by several Twin Cities cleaning companies.
“This was a hard fight, but we were fighting for a better life for our families and a step forward on rolling back racial disparities in our state, and the bargaining team is so proud of the final result that we are bringing back to the full membership,” said Brahim Kone, a janitor from St. Paul and leader on the bargaining team.
Details of the settlement:
Largest janitorial wage increases in more than 20 years
- Over 60% of all janitors will immediately get raises to over $15/hour
- All full-time janitors will receive raises of $.50, $.50, $.40, $.40
- Full-timers will reach $16.42 by the end of the 4-year contract, a 12.3% increase from current wages
- Part-timers will receive the same 12.3% increase
New workload protections
- Worker-centered enforcement through worksite reviews and walkthroughs of janitor’s workloads
- A groundbreaking professional study through the University of Minnesota on the workload problems in worksites, developed through an industry-wide committee
Expanded benefits
- For the first time, part-time janitors will receive full healthcare benefits and will have paid sick days
- Healthcare benefits improved for full-time janitors
Other wins
- Janitors won a “just cause” clause for the first time, which means they cannot be fired without reason
- Company must make “good faith effort to accommodate” workers who want to take New Years Eve or Eid off from work on paid time
- Protections of benefits when buildings switch contractors
- A better process for accessing earned vacation time
“Winning new policies about workload, including walkthroughs with union stewards and a plan to do a worker-centered third-party study about the real challenges facing janitors so we can end this workload crisis once and for all, are huge wins for janitors and our families,” said Lucia Guaman, a janitor who works for Harvard cleaning RBC Plaza in Minneapolis.