Custodians View College Policies as Detrimental by Tobias Smith As the summer approaches and students prepare to depart, the College’s custodial staff is growing increasingly apprehensive about planned shift changes. For over a year, Facilities Operations, the department that manages custodial services, has planned to move about half of the custodial staff to third shift. This shift runs from 3 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. The College says the move would increase custodial productivity. “It’s the best way and most efficient way, because the building is empty [during third shift]. It’s the least disruptive to the academic process,” Executive Director of Facilities Operations Mike Will said. “The academic buildings would be predominantly cleaned on the 11 p.m. to 7:30 a.m. shift, and the residential halls would on the 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. shift.” Since the hiring freeze went into effect, the planned shifts have been stalled. The custodial staff currently has six vacancies, as well as a number of employees out on medical leave. On any given day, the school is being maintained by only two-thirds of its total possible staff positions. However, the College still plans to eventually move about 50 percent of its custodians to third shift. Facilities applauds the work that custodians are accomplishing with the understaffing. “The amount of productivity we are getting is phenomenal,” Assistant Director of ResLife/Facilities Keith Watkins said. Most employees now work first shift. While moving employees to other shifts might increase efficiency and provide less intrusion into classes, many custodians worry that the shifts will seriously disrupt their lives. “If you go to second shift, you won’t see your family. I was stuck on second shift for two years. I didn’t see my kids for two years,” Scott Smith, a custodian in the Conservatory, said. Some employees wonder if the additional 50 cents per hour that third shift employees receive, combined with possible increased health care costs and the additional cost of lighting facilities cleaned at night, might actually make the move to third shift more expensive for the College. When asked about whether these were valid concerns, Will said “there is no evidence for that statement at all.” Other custodians worry about the physical strain of working late hours. “Health-wise it’s going to tear us up. They are concerned about the cost of health care, but people are going to call in sick,” Donna Baker, a custodian in Fairchild dormitory, said. Custodians also point to their pride in the job, and relationships with students, faculty and co-workers. If moved to third shift, many of these bonds would be severed. Donna Baker said of her relationship with her coworker, “We have worked together for seven years. Now they are going to change that, and we don’t know who we are going to work with.” Custodian George McAdams echoed the same sentiments about his relationship with students.“I give people rides to the airport. It goes beyond cleaning.” Facilities insists that it doesn’t plan to move employees involuntarily. It had long planned to only place newly hired workers, or custodians who volunteered, onto third shift. However, with the recent hiring freeze, the College has had enough difficulty covering day positions. Many custodians hope that the College stands by its commitment to voluntary shift changes. “Mike Will and Keith Watkins gave us their word they would not force us to work nights,” McAdams said. Facilities disagrees. “Ever since I have been here, these individuals have been told that they may have to work flexible schedules,” Will said. “But that doesn’t make any difference,” he continued, “because management has the right to work any shift [even though] I don’t choose to make them do that.” Will emphasized that involuntary shift changes were a last resort, but could not be ruled out. There is also concern that shift changes may occur over the summer, when students aren’t on campus. Facilities, however, insists that is not going to happen. During the summer months all custodians are moved to day shifts throughout the week. Because classes are not in session, there is no need to clean buildings at night. “There will be no third shift in the summer, until students come back,” Will said.

May 10 Commencement

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