 |
 |
 |
|
||
|
||||
 |
||||
|
|
Path: Main / Committees / Advisory Committee on Business Practices / March 9, 2006 To Members of the Georgetown University Community: Last spring I wrote to members of the University community to provide information on Georgetown's adoption of the Just Employment Policy [1], a policy designed to ensure fair and competitive compensation packages for University employees and full-time contract workers who provide services on our campuses. As we approach the one year-anniversary of that decision, I would like to give you an update on our work in this important area. First, on July 1, 2005 we funded and implemented a new minimum total compensation for full-time contract workers of $13.00/per hour. Total compensation includes wages and all benefits such as health insurance, sick leave, retirement, social security and other benefits. The University continues to negotiate with one contractor that has three employees and is not yet in compliance. Second, in order to evaluate the Just Employment Policy and address related issues as they emerge, we have continued to hold regular meetings of the Advisory Committee on Business Practices (ACBP) [2]. This committee includes a wide range of University stakeholders -- including students, faculty, contract workers, staff and others -- and works with me to analyze the ethical and moral issues that should be taken into consideration in the evaluation of staff labor policy and the renewal of existing contracts with Georgetown University vendors. The most recent meeting of the ACBP was March 1, 2006. Third, to better understand the policy, some members of the community have asked for an economic breakdown of the benefits offered by our vendors as part of the current mandatory $13.00/per hour total compensation rate. In response, this semester I asked our contractors to provide more detailed information to the ACBP. Most of the contractors agreed to do so on the condition that the information be shared only within the ACBP. That information was provided at the committee meeting on March 1st. Fourth, in consultation with the ACBP, the University recently decided that it will accelerate the increase in minimum total compensation for full-time contract workers articulated in the Just Employment Policy. As a result, full-time contract workers will receive an increase in minimum total compensation from $13.00/per hour to $13.50/per hour on July 1, 2006, and receive a second previously scheduled increase to $14.00/per hour by July 1, 2007. Fifth, there have been calls for Georgetown to require contractors to use a "card-check process" during unionization drives, rather than the secret ballot process established by the National Labor Relations Board. As the University officer with primary responsibility in this area, I will work with others in President DeGioia's senior leadership team to explore the proposal for a mandatory card-check process rather than secret ballot elections. Given the legal and fiduciary issues associated with requiring our many diverse contractors to use a card-check process, this will require considerable analysis over the next several months. At the last meeting of the ACBP I advised the committee members that at the appropriate moment their perspective and thinking on this issue will be solicited among those of other stakeholders. I would add that Georgetown is justly proud of a successful partnership with unions. Indeed, since the 1970's many University employees have been represented by unions. Our Just Employment Policy articulates clearly that all working members have the right to freely associate and organize. This commitment is consistent with values key to our educational community, namely the right of all community members to speak freely and express their views on issues that are important to them. I would like to thank the members of the Advisory Committee for Business Practices and all those who have worked on an issue that is central to our mission as a Catholic and Jesuit university. Sincerely, Spiros Dimolitsas, Ph.D. [1] Just Employment Policy [2] Advisory Committee on Business Practices (ACBP) |
|
|
|