UCLA employees protest for union jobs at Luskin Center
Service workers at UCLA want ‘equal pay for equal work’
Campus workers protested Thursday afternoon outside of Covel Commons to demand unionized jobs at the new Mayer and Renee Luskin Conference Center.
The protest was organized by the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees 3299 union, and consisted of employees from multiple departments including UCLA catering, maintenance and housekeeping.
According to their website, AFSCME 3299 currently represents about 20,000 workers within the UC system.
The building that was the focus on the protest, the Luskin Center, is currently under construction, and will be located on Westwood Plaza once it is completed in June. This new addition to campus will feature a variety of spaces including numerous guest rooms, a fitness center, and a restaurant.
Frank Lombardi, an assistant cook at Covel Dining Hall and leader in the protest, said:“We’re here to hold UCLA to their word. The jobs at the Luskin Center need to be union, and we want to see that in writing.”
UCLA has participated in verbal agreements with AFSCME 3299, however no official statements have been made. Lombardi and other members of the union fear that UCLA will sub-contract workers to increase profit margins by avoiding paying retirement benefits.
Lombardi said:“We’ve seen it happen in northern California and we might have it happen here. They are sub-contracting workers where there should be union jobs.”
This is not the only protest organized by UCLA employees to take place in recent times. In September of last year, lecturers and librarians protested for better job stability and access to welfare benefits. In 2013, AFSCME 3299 protested UCLA’s decision to increase employees’ retirement contributions by 1.5 per cent without including a wage increase.
As the protesters on Thursday chanted on the Hill: “UC greed has got to.”