Wordsmith.org: the magic of words

Wordsmith Talk

About Us | What's New | Search | Site Map | Contact Us  

Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Page 1 of 2 1 2
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 3,409
M
Carpal Tunnel
OP Offline
Carpal Tunnel
M
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 3,409
While normally priding myself on being an apolitical animal, this article in the NYT struck a chord, perhaps due to my having been a "service worker" once upon a long ago. I would be especially interested to hear from any alumni of the establishment in question
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/04/30/opinion/30HERB.html For anybody who doesn't like cookies, I have clipped the article to my idrive account.


Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 14
J
stranger
Offline
stranger
J
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 14
Although I applaud the efforts of those at Harvard who are fighting for the university's underpaid employees, the problem in question undoubtedly is not confined to the university's campus in Cambridge. I suspect that universities and colleges throughout this country pay their lower-level employees on the cheap, failing to incorporate the so-called "living wage." Is Harvard any different than Yale in this regard? Or Columbia? Or Princeton? And how about non-academic workplaces? I seriously doubt that the "living wage" has taken root across the board; the federal government's minimum wage standard, which is substantially lower than the "living wage," provides most businesses with the authoritative cover to underpay their low-level employees (a cheap excuse, if you will). The sad fact of the matter is that student grumblings at Harvard, which are essentially Harvard-specific in nature (or at least are treated as such by the mainstream media), often drown out or otherwise overshadow societal ills that encompass a much larger segment of the population and reach far beyond the hallowed halls the nation's most prestigious institution of higher education. What's going on at Harvard to be sure is a public relations disaster, and I suspect that the administration will eventually be forced to capitulate (or at least compromise) so as to smooth the hackles of irate alumni and do-gooders the world over. But when the dust has settled and the protestors have returned to their classes at Harvard, the "disaster" will continue to thrive in other precincts...without the moral outcry and media attention.

John




Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 3,409
M
Carpal Tunnel
OP Offline
Carpal Tunnel
M
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 3,409
, the problem in question undoubtedly is not confined to the university's campus in Cambridge. I suspect that universities and colleges throughout this country pay their lower-level employees on the cheap, failing to incorporate the so-called "living wage."

I am sure that is true, indeed it is the nature of capitalism to pay no more than one absolutely must, and I'm sure that if Harvard et al. could get their hands on Nike's 50cent-a-month Bangladeshi kids, they would. What caught my eye about the article in terms of possible relevance to this Board was the careless use of language from an institute of advanced learning. the article says "Just two weeks ago a spokesman for the school said, "We will not be adopting a living wage." I would have thought that Harvard would have phrased its refusal more adroitly, rather than conceding the term "living wage". To openly say that one will not pay a "living wage" seems to be rather inept, given that it implies (concedes?) that one does care if one's employees live or not. There was another excellent article in the NYT recently on the importance of the mot juste in politics, with reference to the phrase "fast-tracking". It seems that Harvard, on this occasion at least, could not be bothered fighting the propaganda war.



Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
W
wwh Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
W
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
Dear Max: I have no idea how Harvard spends their huge endowment. Obviously they have some very bright people trying to ensure that they get the most bang for the buck.
Apparently they have not felt the advisability of spending more on PR. My definition of a liberal is a guy who is willing to spend somebody else's money.


Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 3,146
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 3,146
All academic institutions screw their non-academic staff down as far as they can in all respects. I used to work for Otago University as a programmer/analyst, and I used Arpanet (pre-Internet Internet for those who don't know) to communicate with people doing similar work in varsities all over the shop. Discussions inevitably got around to employment terms and conditions. Allum same everywhere, I'm afraid. Poor money. Bad conditions. Benefits, hah!

The only consolation was that the senior students acting as tutors got screwed worse than us!

It's probably only in Zild that we've extended the concept to nailing the academic staff as well. Probably a reflection of our "egalitarian" background ...



The idiot also known as Capfka ...
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,156
B
old hand
Offline
old hand
B
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,156
Don't they have a union for those employees? Pretty much all public service employees here are unionized. And there are no private universities (yet...but I'm sure NAFTA will take care of that soon). So it seems that the non-academic staff here have it a bit better than in the US.


Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 3,146
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 3,146
Don't they have a union for those employees?

Oh yes, there were unions. But half the members were of the "poor university; can't really afford more money" school of thought. Thoroughly brainwashed. Pretty hard to organise industrial action under those circumstances.



The idiot also known as Capfka ...
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 544
H
addict
Offline
addict
H
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 544
As I understand it, this issue has actually been fairly hot at Harvard for longer than the article claims. I also know that various unions are involved in this fight, but, thanks to the very slanted rules laid out in the National Labor Relations Act in the US, which strongly favors employers over employees, that's no guarantee of things working out in the janitors' favor.

It is true that this is an issue that goes beyond Harvard, and beyond elite universities, and beyond the educational sector. But each battle won means something. If the janitors at Harvard are fairly paid, then Princeton will have a harder time saying they shouldn't have to pay theirs fairly, and if the janitors at all universities end up fairly paid, then other institutions, academic or commercial, will have a harder time saying theirs shouldn't be...

Finally - I agree that it's pretty surprising Harvard would bungle the response on this one so badly, given that they've been in the fight for a few years and must have learned a thing or two...

Happy Labor Day, all. Wordies of the world, unite!


Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 5,400
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 5,400
I am on the side of the workers for the most part-- but the fact is-- they get almost $10.00 an hour ($9.25--) on The Economist "Big Mac scale"--over 3 big macs an hour. But the whole north east of US is an expensive place to live. I couldn't afford to live in Cambridge-- as an IT professional! I might be able to afford something closer than 1 hour away-- but the Boston area is built up-- $9.25 for a job that doesn't require literacy-- or a command of english? the standards are higher to get a job at McDonalds-- and the jobs there pay less!

And what do they get besides salary? Some universities offer free tutition to employess and family-- it might not put food on the table today-- but its is a substantial benefit. and health care? and paid vacations?

Harvard has handled the whole thing rather poorly-- but so has the union-- I find it kind of hard to shed tears over workers who have unpleasant jobs-- but not dangerous.. or particulary demanding, with almost no skills required. getting paid $9.25 an hour and complaining about a 1 hour commute. (I have a 1 hour commute too!)


Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 2,204
R
Pooh-Bah
Offline
Pooh-Bah
R
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 2,204
May I add a word from the point of view of British Universities?
The Assistant Staff in Brit. Unis - based on my experience in Lancaster, but also informed by my up-to-date knowledge of T.U. affairs generally - are, on the whole, reasonably well paid. Certainly in the provinces, jobs as cleaners, caterers, technical staff and secretarial staff are sought after, because the pay is rather more than for similar jobs in the commercial sector, and considerably more than in the public sector (hospitals and schools, for example.)
Conditions are usually reasonable, although the work-load is often quite heavy, with "gap savings" being made every time anyone leaves.
I am not quite so sure of my ground when it comes to the Unis sited in the big cities, but I am not aware of any rumblings of unrest at grass-root Union level. (And I would almost certainly be aware if it was happening!)

On the point of free education for Uni workers, I have, over the past ten years, had three members of the Assistant staff take my courses, one of whom is doing a three year Certificate course and aims to do either a degree or an MA at the end of it. I also know a number of secretarial/clerical staff who started off as cleaners or catering staff and have progressed.

The main grievances at the Universities over here are from the academic staff, who have suffered pay rises of significantly less than the cost of living rises over the past fifteen years or more, so that they are somewhere between 15 and 20 per cent (depends which side does the calculations!) down, in real terms, on the pay levels of the 1970s.
The other major grievance from academic staff is the prevalence of short-term contracts. 1 year contracts which may or may not be renewed are very common - indeed the norm for newly engaged staff. And this is not just for research staff funded by short-term grants (which is at least understandable, if still regrettable) but for staff teaching well-established courses, and for academic-related staff who administer long-term programmes.
[/rant]


Page 1 of 2 1 2

Moderated by  Jackie 

Link Copied to Clipboard
Forum Statistics
Forums16
Topics13,912
Posts229,283
Members9,179
Most Online3,341
Dec 9th, 2011
Newest Members
TRIALNERRA, befuddledmind, KILL_YOUR_SUV, Heather_Turey, Standy
9,179 Registered Users
Who's Online Now
0 members (), 435 guests, and 3 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Top Posters(30 Days)
Top Posters
wwh 13,858
Faldage 13,803
Jackie 11,613
tsuwm 10,542
wofahulicodoc 10,510
LukeJavan8 9,916
AnnaStrophic 6,511
Wordwind 6,296
of troy 5,400
Disclaimer: Wordsmith.org is not responsible for views expressed on this site. Use of this forum is at your own risk and liability - you agree to hold Wordsmith.org and its associates harmless as a condition of using it.

Home | Today's Word | Yesterday's Word | Subscribe | FAQ | Archives | Search | Feedback
Wordsmith Talk | Wordsmith Chat

© 1994-2024 Wordsmith

Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5