Labor disputes continue at Pitt

The investigation into Sodexo’s employment practices on campus has moved forward since… The investigation into Sodexo’s employment practices on campus has moved forward since the spring protests at Market Central, while negotiations between the food service provider and union representatives continue.

While the issues are separate, both the investigation and contract negotiations can have an effect on workers at Pitt and the way Pitt’s dining services run.

The investigation, which began in March, will likely finish inside the next two weeks. SEIU charges kicked off the inquiry, claiming that Sodexo interrogated and intimidated its non-unionized workers.

The SEIU, or Service Employees International Union, represents more than 2 million employees across North America.

SEIU Local 32BJ represents more than 5,000 workers in Western Pennsylvania, according to its website.

The National Labor Relations Board, a federal agency that investigates allegations of unfair labor practices and holds elections to determine if workers want to form a union, began the investigation more than three months ago.

Robert Chester, the regional director of the National Labor Relations Board, said that the group will likely decide on the charges in the next week to 10 days.

“Sodexo is cooperating fully in the NLRB’s ongoing investigations at the University of Pittsburgh,” said Monica Zimmer, the spokeswoman for Sodexo.

In May, Chester said that the process would likely take six to eight weeks. The investigation has now “taken longer than normal,” he said.

Part of that delay came from a series of subpeonas that the NLRB sent to Sodexo, for both documents and individuals. While the investigation might have taken longer than Chester originally thought, a four-month investigation is not out of the ordinary.

The results of this most recent Sodexo investigation could be anything from dropped charges, an out-of-court settlement or a trial. Chester said that fewer than 5 percent of cases go to court.

The negotiations between the union and Sodexo have gone on since February, before an extension on the workers’ old contract ended. The workers at Pitt have been working under the terms of their old, expired contract since it ended in March.

When negotiations stalled at the end of April — during finals week at Pitt — the union launched a vocal three-day strike on Pitt’s campus.

That was the first time food service workers at Pitt had struck since 1970.

After the strike ended, negotiations continued with a federal mediator, and all communications between the two parties goes through the mediator. Both sides have been optimistic about the outcome for the past several months.

Gabe Morgan, the Western Pennsylvania director of the SEIU, set a goal of the start of the semester. Morgan said that the workers “will have a strong contract with cost of living raises and affordable health care by the time school starts, but we won’t stop taking action on campus until all Pitt Sodexo workers have the good jobs their families need.”

Zimmer said, “We hope to reach an agreement soon.”