Univ. of Miami students join striking janitors

On Mar. 28 students at the University of Miami initiated a sit-in the school's admissions office in order to push University President Donna Shalala to support campus janitors currently on strike. However, Shalala has not allowed students access to food, water or bathroom facilities, forcing them into an unplanned hunger strike. When asked if students could access food from the outside, Shalala responded, "I'm not feeding the strike!" Students say they are willing to make this sacrifice until Shalala demands that UNICCO, the janitors' direct employer contracted out by the university, recognize the workers' union once a majority of the employees have signed cards authorizing the union to represent them. "We tried to meet with Shalala several times before sitting in," said Amancio Paradela, "but nothing seemed to work." Shalala did agree to form a working group to study the compensation and benefits issues facing the contract employees at the university and suggested she might raise wages and provide health benefits. But the workers are still on strike, noting that a union would be able to provide them with the long term protections they really need with UNICCO. Students are doing this in conjunction with the National Student-Labor Week of Action which includes demonstrations at over 200 universities nationwide. Organized annually by the Student Labor Action Project (SLAP), the week focuses on corporate interests on campus, including campus administrators that act more in the interest of big business than those who make a campus tick–workers and students. "Neither students nor workers should have their education or jobs compromised so campus-based corporations like UNICCO can make more money," said Carl Lipscombe, the national coordinator of SLAP. The students say they are willing to make this sacrifice if it pushes the janitors closer to their goals. The Student Labor Action Project (SLAP) is a joint program of Jobs with Justice, a nationwide network of community-labor coalitions, and the United States Student Association, the oldest and largest organization representing students on Capitol Hill. The week is coordinated this year by the United Students Against Sweatshops, the Living Wage Action Coalition, the Student/Farm worker Alliance, the National Movimiento Estudiantil Chicana/o de Aztlan (MEChA), Not with Our Money and Student Action with Farm workers.