After months of negotiations unions, students and administrators agreed to a living wage agreement last March. Georgetown appears to be following the most basic tenets of the new policy, but that is not enough. The administration must ensure that every facet of the policy is implemented with a spirit of propriety and transparency.
Georgetown contracts many university services to companies such as P&R Enterprises, Allied-Barton Security Services and Marriott International. In recent weeks, University officials have been slow to release detailed information regarding employee benefits, which make up much of the minimum $13 in total compensation required by policy, according to Living Wage Coalition members.
Although some of this is not public information, details have even been withheld from Georgetown’s Advisory Committee for Business Practices, according to some student members. They would like to see a comprehensive breakdown of the benefits offered by each specific contractor.
Moreover, the March agreement stipulates a twice-monthly meeting of this group, which consists of students, workers and administrators. Two months into the semester, only one meeting has taken place, and future meetings are scheduled only for once a month. Administrators should maintain Georgetown’s commitment to understanding and dialogue encompassed in its Jesuit identity, as well as maintaining its commitment to dignified business practices.
Based on the information the administration has released, the companies appear to be moving toward full implementation, though the university is still negotiating with one contractor. Yet problems remain. Some of $13 is made up of extraneous and useless benefits instead of actual wages or health care, according to LWC members. For example, they said, Marriott provides employees with free stays in one of its hotels. But few contract workers have the time to take a night off and stay in a hotel.
In some cases, contractors have not fulfilled University requirements in a timely manner. According to LWC member Anders Fremstad (SFS ‘08), Marriott Human Resources stopped organizing English as a Second Language classes because they were too busy implementing other policies. Georgetown’s Just Employment Policy mandates that the Administration require its contractors to provide access to ESL classes.
Living Wage Coalition members have worked too hard and the importance of a real living wage is too great for the University to fail to effectively implement the Just Employment Agreement. Therefore, the University should disclose all relevant facts to the Advisory Committee on Business Practices and require Marriott and other subcontractors to provide real, substantive benefits to their employees. The university must make certain that the just employment policy is carried out in a sincere manner, rather than accepting nominal compliance.
