On March 1, 2010, Pomona College dining hall staff turned in petitions signed by over 90% of dining hall workers requesting the freedom to choose to form a union without intimidation or interference from the College. We formed an organization along with students and alumni called Workers for Justice.
When we first went public with our request, President David Oxtoby pledged publicly that there would be no intimidation of dining hall workers.
Despite that pledge, the Pomona College Board of Trustees and administration have created a climate of fear on campus.
Anti-Union Comments—After workers presented him with their petition for a fair process to decide on unionization, President Oxtoby publicly questioned whether a union is necessary and asserted his right to tell workers about the “disadvantages of unionization.”
Alleged Threat—The National Labor Relations Board’s General Counsel is charging Pomona College dining hall managers with telling Christian Torres, a cook at Pomona for 6 years, that he was denied a promotion because he wears a button supporting unionizing. The manager then told him he should remove the button if he wanted to be considered for the position (read the complaint).
Student/Worker Gag Rule—Over the summer of 2011 the college instituted a gag rule prohibiting dining hall workers from talking to non-employees while they are in the dining hall, even when they are on break. This rule effectively bans workers from talking to students in the dining halls.
During the week of November 6 the community responded to the gag rule by sending more than one thousand emails to President Oxtoby and members of the Pomona College administration, who have not withdrawn the divisive policy. The National Labor Board’s General Counsel is charging the college administration with violating federal labor law by implementing this policy during a unionization drive (read the complaint).
Unwarranted Immigration Investigation—On November 7, Pomona informed various faculty, staff, and students that it had done an investigation into their documents authorizing them to work in the United States and found deficiencies in the documentation of 84 individuals on campus. The Board of Trustees and the administration were not required by law to conduct this investigation, and did so without prompting from any federal agency. The college administration gave workers—several of whom have been working at the college for decades—a mere three weeks to correct the discrepancies, and fired 17 people when they did not meet the deadline, including 16 dining hall workers.
A democratic vote on the Union is not possible as long as President Oxtoby, his administration, and our managers are free to intervene in our decision and our vote. This is our choice. Just as faculty assert their right to academic freedom, we assert our right to debate and decide this question free of pressure from our employer. We call for neutrality from the administration, board of trustees and our managers, not from the College as a whole. In fact, we invite and welcome the College community, including faculty, students, staff, alumni and all members of the community except those who have direct power over our livelihoods—the administration, board of trustees, and our managers—to participate in the discussion about unionization.
