Below are messages of support from elected officials in Cambridge and Boston, supporting the rights of HUSPMGU members to join the union of their choosing, HUCTW. They call on administrators to work collaboratively and expeditiously with both unions on a plan for HUSPMGU inclusion in HUCTW.
From Cambridge Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui:
“I support all workers’ right to join the union they choose. This includes Harvard’s HUSPMGU members who have clearly and repeatedly expressed their desire to be included in HUCTW. After six years of negotiation on this topic it is past time for Harvard to stop standing in their way. The University’s Administration should support these workers’ legitimate goal of inclusion in HUCTW and work with both unions immediately to ensure that valued museum and parking staff can achieve the same sustainable pay, comprehensive benefits, and strong protections that all other employee groups in University unions enjoy.”
Mayor Siddiqui’s signed letter of support
From Boston City Councilor Liz Breadon:
“HUSPMGU members provide essential customer service in the Harvard Art Museums and in Harvard Campus Services, and are an integral part of the connections that exist between the University’s museums and operations divisions, and the University’s students, staff, and the broader community. These women and men demonstrate personal commitment, tenacity, and diplomacy in their roles within these two long established divisions of the University.
As the University continues to develop exciting new academic and cultural opportunities, Art Museum and Campus Services leaders must pay careful attention to the quality of the jobs at Harvard Art Museums and Harvard Campus Services, including parity in pay and benefits with members of the other Harvard unions.
Hourly rates for HUSPMGU workers are 50% lower than rates earned by custodial and dining services workers in these same two divisions. This disparity among Harvard service workers doesn’t make sense, and is clearly unfair to the dedicated members of the long-established HUSPMGU union. All members of the Harvard workforce deserve a living wage and sufficient paid time off so that they may build strong working and family lives in the Cambridge/Boston area.
I call on leaders at the Harvard Art Museums and Campus Services to immediately prioritize the implementation of a plan that will lift up HUSPMGU members so that they can have the same high standards of pay, benefits, and supportive working environment enjoyed by all other Harvard employee groups. I stand in solidarity with the members of HUSPMGU as they pursue the important goal of inclusion in HUCTW.”