TLDR: Janitorial workers have explicitly asked for support from the Stanford community before their next contract negotiation meeting on May 5th – sign this petition to show our janitorial staff that we stand behind them in their demands.

Last week, janitorial staff employed at Stanford through labor contractor UG2 began negotiating a side letter agreement with the University. This agreement is renegotiated by Stanford every few years, and outlines the supplementary pay and benefits Stanford provides beyond UG2’s baseline.

At the negotiation meeting, union representatives shared their modest proposal to update pay and benefits provisions. Even though their proposal is similar to an increase directly-hired janitors received in March, UG2’s representative laughed at the union’s proposal.

The pandemic intensified the challenges janitorial staff face. Not only do they shoulder greater health risks to their families and themselves, but numerous rounds of layoffs and furloughs have brought financial challenges, exacerbated by the absence of quarantine pay or additional sick leave, and chronic overwork has gradually become the norm. Now, on top of this, Stanford refuses even to negotiate standard wage adjustments in good faith.

Subcontracted staff are just asking for the pay and benefits their directly hired counterparts already receive. This side letter agreement is Stanford’s opportunity to show subcontracted workers our appreciation for their sacrifice during the pandemic. Janitorial staff have explicitly asked for support from the Stanford community before their next negotiation meeting on May 5th – sign this petition to show our janitorial workers that we stand behind them.