Unionized janitors at Providence College faced a serious challenge last spring in seeking better wages from Unicco, not least because PC officials were reluctant to exert pressure on the large Newton, Massachusetts-based subcontracting firm. But the PC janitors, who are represented by Service Employees International Union, Local 134, recently ratified a new contract that raises their base hourly pay from $8.06 to $10.31, a 28 percent increase, over three years, and includes other improvements. Karen McAninch, business agent for Local 134, attributes the progress to a public pressure campaign and a subsequent decision by PC officials to send "the message to the company that they didn't want any trouble when the kids came back to school."

Supporters hope similar tactics will yield results for scores of other janitors, also employed by Unicco and represented by SEIU, Local 615, who clean office buildings in downtown Providence and Boston. "We, in turn, want to be as helpful as we can to them, in downtown Providence in particular," says McAninch, noting that pay and benefits for the Local 615 workers are far worse than those included in the earlier contract for the janitors at Providence College.

The uphill nature of the latest fight seemed palpable as a small group of protesters gathered in the wind outside of One Financial Plaza last Thursday, September 26. Frank Sosa, field organizer for Local 615, stood at the front of this mostly female, mostly Spanish-speaking group to protest the low wages to meted out by Unicco, and the downtown office buildings loomed large and imposing over the dozen or so workers.

Sosa says SEIU started "organizing our protest because [Unicco] was breaking every single labor law." Gesturing toward One Financial Plaza, he adds, "They have a young lady working here for $6 an hour. The Rhode Island minimum wage is $6.50. We just want dignity and respect for our members, a decent living wage, and to have the company stop intimidating us."

Officials for Unicco declined comment, but the company published an ad in The Boston Globe on Sunday, September 29, accusing SEIU of waging "a war of words filled with misinformation, innuendo, and in some cases false and misleading statements," the Associated Press reported.

Cleaning work at more than 40 buildings in downtown Providence is contracted out to Unicco, including the Fleet Center and the University of Rhode Island. Supporters of the janitors held a larger downtown protest on Monday, September 30, and the janitors were planning to strike one day this week in hopes of upping the ante.

According to Peter Asen, a member of the Brown Student Labor Alliance, "Companies hire contractors because they want to pass the buck in terms of responsibility." Although the money paid to workers comes from the company that hires Unicco, the money is filtered through the subcontractor. "Everyone gives you the run-around," says Asen, "and it's like, who's going to be responsible for paying these workers, and the answer is no one."

"It comes down to the issue of respect," Asen says. "Just about all of the workers who clean [Unicco-contracted] buildings are immigrants, and most of them can't speak English. The fact that they can't speak English severely limits the opportunities they have." Asen says the janitors earn the same wage regardless of how long they have worked for Unicco. "We had a guy who had been working there [One Financial Plaza] for nine years," he says, "and he still got $6.50 an hour."

Ian Donnis can be reached at idonnis[a]phx.com.

Issue Date: October 4 - 10, 2002