Protest Against Management Abuse of University of Washington Custodians

About thirty-five students and community members gathered on the south side of UWs campus on January 12, 2010 afternoon to display their objection to the way immigrant custodians have been treated by Custodial Services management. This protest was the latest action in a labor justice campaign uniting students, community members, and on-campus workers. Despite months of public outcry, organizers of the protest noted that UW Custodial Services continues its terrible treatment of workers. Area managers in custodial services are stepping up their harassment and intimidation. Due to mass increases in workloads and work speed-up, there has been a rise in emotional and physical stress, as custodians work faster and harder in an effort to complete the enormous amount of work forced on them. Injuries and illness have increased with the worsening conditions. When workers attempt to speak out or organize against this treatment, they are subject to intimidation and retaliation. The action organizers cited accounts of egregious practices by the custodial managers, and it seems that there are three, who have been particularly abusive: Andre Vasquez, Allegra Reynolds, and Yang-Sook Choe. One of these managers, Andre, has taken to harassing students too, as one night last month, he rudely harassed some law students, who were in the building for an officially scheduled meeting. Management has used a variety of control tactics, including a recent practice of using the campus police to …