USC custodial staff rallied today at the intersection of S. Hoover Street and W. Jefferson Boulevard to protest alleged unfair labor practices at Aramark, a service worker company contracted by the university.
This is the third rally organized this year by USC janitors, with the most recent one taking place in early March, when demonstrators called for better health insurance and benefits due to frustrations with ongoing negotiations with Aramark. They are also being backed by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), with most of the demonstrators wearing shirts with the SEIU logo on them.
Maria Contreras, a USC janitor and rally organizer, said Aramark has yet to meet the janitor’s demands after months of negotiations. She also said that they have been working without a contract for the last three months, and that other janitors are growing concerned. Aramark did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“We’ve been in contract negotiations with the company for the last two, three months, We will be back at the negotiating table next week and we hope there’s some movement on the company’s end.” Contreras said. “The company hasn’t met the workers’ demands, as far as affordable health care and livable wages. People are waiting. There’s a lot of uncertainties. They’re questioning how they’re going to make ends meet.”
The demonstration began their rally at Tommy Trojan before moving to the Hoover/Jefferson intersection, where traffic was held up for several minutes. Demonstrators then moved to the USC Village.
Demonstrators carried a banner stating “Janitors ready 2 strike against unfair labor practices” and several of them held signs that said “Justice 4 janitors ready to strike against Aramark [for] unfair labor practices.” The rallying cries and signs carried by demonstrators were in both English and Spanish to reflect the diversity of those involved.
“It’s a beautiful thing that there’s Hispanic/Latinos out here,” she said. “They come from working families, so they know the struggle it is for us to make ends meet, to make sure that our bills are paid, there’s food on the table.”
Contreras added that USC’s janitors have always felt supported by the university’s faculty.
“They’re always asking us if there’s anything that they could do for us, that they’re willing to help out in any way possible, and we really appreciate that,” she said.
Contreras said the effort to improve labor conditions for USC’s janitors will not stop, even if it means moving to strike.
“We don’t want to get to that point, but we’re ready to strike [and do] whatever it takes to get this deal done with Aramark,” she said. “That’s something that we don’t want to do, but it’s something that’s necessary. We have over 200 members that work on campus. We are the ones that work 24/7. If the lights are on, we’re working.”