On Wednesday afternoon, over one hundred students joined Hoya Court employees and UNITE HERE, the union representing Aramark employees who work at Leo O’Donovan Hall, to present their demands for better working conditions as Aramark renegotiates a new labor contract with its food service employees. Two separate petitions organized by Hoya Court workers and the Georgetown Solidarity Committee demanded that Aramark allow workers at Hoya Court and Einstein Bros Bagels a fair process to organize, improve workplace protections, and provide more sustainable food options.
In the two weeks since the Voice published a feature investigating the inequities that Aramark’s workers face on campus, students have learned that the injustices Aramark’s managers perpetuate extend to Hoya Court, where its workers are not unionized together with those at Leo’s. As the Editorial Board predicted back in Oct. 2013, because the university decided to procrastinate on extending the benefits of the Just Employment Policy to Hoya Court, its workers have been left vulnerable to abuse at the hands of Aramark management. They have come out with harrowing stories of abuse that the spirit of the JEP would not have tolerated.
The strong support the Georgetown University community has showed to the campus’ Aramark employees is exactly the unity and resolve that the Editorial Board called for two weeks ago when we learned about the contract negotiations.
Organizations such as H*yas for Choice and the College Democrats helped publicize and circulate GSC’s petition in the weeks before GSC presented their demands to Aramark. Over 2,000 students, faculty and staff expressed their appreciation for the hard work of Aramark’s employees and their disappointment at Aramark’s management practices. Even students from American University came out to show their support at yesterday’s rally.
Georgetown must continue to stand with the workers and keep up the pressure on Aramark. If Aramark allows its employees at Leo’s a fair process to organize, then it should also allow Hoya Court employees to do the same so on the principle of equity. Aramark workers at Leo’s will also be in a better position to negotiate with Aramark’s managers, who should make the choice to acquiesce to the workers’ demands. All of Georgetown University’s community, as well as supporters in other D.C. area colleges, are watching.
Aramark’s current contract with Leo’s expires in 2017, and other bidders will make compelling cases for the university to replace Aramark when negotiations for a new dining services contract begin in the very near future. Until then, if Aramark wants to stay at Georgetown, it must repair its long track record of mismanaging its frontline employees. Otherwise, its presence on the Hilltop will no longer be welcome.
