The Brandeis Library Workers Union recently held a rally, and delivered an associated petition to Brandeis administrators, in protest of “deferred maintenance” (the failure to update staff salaries and university facilities on schedule). According to a Google Form (sent to community members so that they may e-sign a petition) that was obtained by The Hoot, “The Brandeis Library Workers Union has been in contract negotiations with the University since the middle of last year. During this time, former University President Ron Leibowitz acknowledged that both buildings and staff salaries are suffering from decades of ‘deferred maintenance.’ While the University has begun to address the buildings, there is no articulated plan and no commitment to change when it comes to paying workers fairly.” Rally organizers told The Hoot that this petition has over 300 signatures from community members.
The form goes on, saying that “Library workers are paying the cost of this ‘deferred maintenance’ as our salaries lag behind. Several library workers are paid below the minimum of Brandeis’s own hiring range for their job, and over 89% are paid below the median. The Library Union proposal addresses stagnant wages with structured pay increases over time so that wages don’t fall behind the cost of living, and workers can expect modest raises over years of service. The administration’s offer raises only a few individuals’ salaries which have fallen egregiously behind. This adjustment is minimal, and has no mechanisms in place to ensure livelihoods won’t fall behind again. In their proposal, someone with over 20 years of service to Brandeis only merits making the minimum rate of pay for their job–the same as a new hire. The University’s offer also includes a ‘cost-of-living’ adjustment that is significantly below the actual cost of living.”
Finally, it adds that “Their offer all but ensures that worker pay will rapidly fall behind again, and this cycle of deferred maintenance will continue. Workers do not have the luxury of deferring rent payments, medical bills, or childcare fees. We, the undersigned, call on Interim President Levine and the Board of Trustees to commit now to addressing this deferred maintenance, and for the University to come to the bargaining table ready to work with the Union on building a salary structure that keeps experienced employees in their jobs, and rewards them fairly over time.”
The Library Workers Union held a rally on Thursday, Jan. 23 at 3:00 PM in the Goldfarb Library, where workers shared how the lack of a new contract has negatively impacted them personally, and later delivered a petition to Brandeis’ administration in Bernstein-Marcus. During a brief speech in front of Goldfarb one rally attendee noted that the group wants to work towards a long term solution with Brandeis, but that Brandeis is asking workers to take a 3% pay cut once rising inflation/cost-of-living is accounted for. Another attendee added that the group wants to build careers at Brandeis. But, for that to be possible, the attendee noted that Brandeis must invest in its workers. Thomas McKeever, President of SEIU 888 (the local chapter of a public service workers union), also spoke and said that the attendees were involved in a pioneering effort to bring organizing rights to Brandeis.
An attendee who identified themselves as a two-time Brandeis alumni and a member of the bargaining team mentioned that the most recent bargaining attempt has been no different than previous attempts. They added that the bargaining team wants employees rewarded for their experience, and to keep experienced employees in their job. They closed by saying that, year after year, the bargaining team had been told that “now isn’t a good time,” and that “the university is already working towards a solution,” but noted that Brandeis should stop ignoring their attempts to fix a problem that they themselves had created.
The group then marched down to Bernstein Marcus, where a delegation entered the building to deliver the printed petition to Interim President Arthur Levine. They told the group of attendees that was waiting outside the building that Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration Stew Uretsky was waiting for them. Executive Vice President Uretsky heard the group’s demands, assured them that he would read every testimonial, and promised to pass the petition onto Interim President Levine.
The Hoot spoke with one of the Library Workers’ Union’s members, who shed more light on the Union members’ needs and what the future may hold. They noted that the Union has been working with Brandeis’ administration for quite some time, adding that in their 21 years at Brandeis they haven’t seen much movement from the administration during the contract negotiations they’ve attended. They elaborated, noting that Brandeis’ lack of willingness to work with Union members on contracts has earned them a negative reputation among area schools.
This Union member noted that they’ve offered a system that would include benchmarks for staff, allowing for regular salary increases at five-year intervals. The Union has also offered to put whatever pay increases they offer in abeyance until Brandeis’ financial situation improves, but that the university still hasn’t moved forward with contract negotiations. They also said that, due to a lack of substantial pay raises, some of their colleagues who had been at the university for several decades had seen their pay rate dip below the mandated minimum for new hires. This attendee also noted that the next contract negotiation is at the end of January, and that their agreement to extend their previous contract (which originally expired on June 31st, 2024) expires in February of this year.
The Hoot reached out to Brandeis’ administration for comment but did not hear back in time for publication.
