Some 1,500 custodians, cooks, groundskeepers and other services workers across the University of Minnesota’s five campuses are threatening to strike for the first time in history unless the university agrees to substantial pay increases.
“We intend to end poverty wages at the University of Minnesota,” said Mick Kelly, 65, a cook who’s worked at the university for 20 years. “We have members who are homeless. We have members who are my age living in people’s basements. That’s the reality of work at the university right now.”
Workers, who are unionized with the Teamsters Local 320, voted by a 93% margin to authorize a strike, rejecting the university’s “last best final offer,” which included the highest pay increase for Teamsters employees in 26 years, according to the university.
Service workers would see an average 5% pay increase under the one-year contract proposed by the university, while workers at the top of the pay scale would get a one time bonus of $500. The average starting wage for a Teamsters job would rise to $21.67 an hour, according to the university.
“The University provides our employees not only with fair pay, but with extensive and generous health and wellbeing benefits,” said Kenneth Horstman, the university’s vice president for human resources, in a statement sent to students, faculty and staff last week.
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