Governor Dayton Addresses Union’s Contract Convention

Hundreds of janitors and security officers gathered at Central High School on Saturday, November 17 to prepare for upcomoning negotiations which will begin on November 27-28.  The workers elected a bargaining committee and approved a set of bargaining principles that were developed after months of member meetings and surveys:

Wages that bring them out of poverty

Affordable, quality healthcare,

Secure, full-time jobs; and

Safe working conditions.

Governor Mark Dayton expressed his support for the workers and told them, “Your wllingness to go to bat for you, for your fellow employees, for your families, for your communities is what’s going to turn the tide.”  Representative Erin Murphy, who will be the House Majority Leader when the Legislature convenes in 2013, also pledged her support.  She told the crowd that she had been on the negotiating team when she was a member of the Nurses Association and that her father had worked at a General Motors factory and was a lifelong member of the United Auto Workers.. Both Governor Dayton and Representative Murphy thanked SEIU for the major role the union played in this year’s election.

Governor Mark Dayton at SEIU26 Contract Convention

Representative Erin Murphy, House Majority Leader Designate

Representatives from a number of other organizations pledged that they would stand with the janitors and security officers in their contract negotiations, including ISAIAH, Neighborhoods Organizing for Change, and the Musicians Union.

Media Coverage of the Contract Convention

Dayton urges union memebes to fight for better pay, Minnesota Public Radio

Service workers gear up for contract negotiations, KSTP

500+ union workers push for better wages, WCCO

The Collective Bargaining Agreement between over 6,000 janitors and security officers in the Twin Cities area and the dozens of contractors that employ them is set to expire December 31.