Worker sees Pitt as fair-weather friend

And the employee turmoil within Facilities Management does not end within the Cathedral of… And the employee turmoil within Facilities Management does not end within the Cathedral of Learning or with Hamer’s case.

Shep D. Womack, a custodian in the William Pitt Union since October 2002, said he has been torn between union policy and the University’s requirements of him since he refused to work outside during adverse weather without proper outerwear this month.

On March 8, Womack refused to work outside because of cold weather unless the University supplied him a coat.

A letter sent to Womack from Nathaniel McCoy, assistant manager of custodial services, said the University offered Womack “rainwear.” However, there was no precipitation that day, and the temperature ranged from a high of 35 degrees to a low of 19 degrees, according to The Weather Channel’s Web site.

Womack refused the coat and was subsequently suspended for one day without pay.

Womack is currently in the process of filing a union grievance for being “told to go home for the rest of the day, for refusing to go outside in single-digit weather without proper gear