Demanding dignified wages at a time of rising cost of living, the Oakland University Campus Maintenance and Trades (OUCMT) Union is negotiating its contract after more than four months of bargaining. With workers leaving for jobs with better pay, the union has reached tentative agreements on overtime equalization and is working to increase wages near the minimum living standard.

Negotiations between OUCMT’s bargaining team and the university began in late August, after the 2022-2025 agreement expired on Oct 31. With more than 26 meetings to date, from which about 15 have been managed by a state mediator, an increase in wages near $22.17 — the minimum living wage according to the MIT living wage calculator — is still being discussed at the negotiation table.

“We worked time and a half almost every day to help satisfy the needs with other heaters,” Joseph Lee, OUCMT member, says about the union’s work during the HTHW pipe crisis that paralyzed the campus last year. “We’d be on call, and we would get a list of 12 different buildings to run to check the heaters that ran out of gas or it was too cold for them to run different things, different breakdowns.”

“We carried them through that big crisis. Never really got much of a thank you, maybe a bunch of cupcakes or something. You know, we’re always treated like this. I think we excel constantly in our skilled trades department and yet, there’s a high amount of attrition,” Lee says.

The contract will determine working conditions for 141 employees, of whom almost 100 are dues-paying members of OUCMT. Since the early 70s, the union has represented operations and maintenance workers in HVAC, the central heating plant, plumbing, electrical, structural, campus cleaning, custodial, skilled trades and groundskeeping, among many other departments.

“We have our economic proposal broken down as custodians, skilled trades, and then grounds, greenskeepers, movers, mail room and others, so we have three different economic wage proposals out there.” Dylan Baade, union president and campus cleaning custodian, says. “We’re fighting for human dignity, wages that actually give us raises above inflation — dignified wages that people can raise their family on.”

Wages up to the MIT living standard

OUCMT has dedicated a major portion of its bargaining to advocate for custodian wages, which are the lowest in the union. Custodian wages stand between $15.92 and $17.43, earning less than the minimum living wage in Oakland County — $22.17 in a household without children.

Lamp specialists, service movers and some level one skill trades workers also find themselves below the living wage. “As we said at the Board of Trustees (BOT), our guys are leaving because wages are going down,” Baade said.

“There was a guy on grounds, he [did] all the automobile repair. He says, ‘Look, I gotta have three hours more or I gotta have an assistant,’ because he’s taking care of every single vehicle,” Lee explains. “It’s the most work anyone has on campus, changing tires, fluid, transmission issues, so he left and now the University is without him and all their trucks are going to the dealerships, which is much more money.”

Overtime equalization policy

Also discussed during the six-hour bargaining sessions was the overtime equalization policy, which states that “overtime hours shall be divided as equally as possible among employees in the same classifications in their department,” the former contract explains.

An overtime equalization list ensures that the least senior employees are offered overtime first, Lee explained. Recently, the custodial team approached the Human Resources (HR) department after realizing that overtime offers were not being made according to the agreement, something that, although now resolved, raised concern going into the bargaining season.

“The end goal of it is to make sure that one person or group of people isn’t eating up all the overtime, but also at the same time that people also aren’t being overworked,” Baade said.

Crisis actions for dignity 

Describing it as a “crisis action,” the union voiced its concerns at the Feb. 13 BOT meeting, where workers shared testimonies of how union members were leaving the university for better-paying jobs, leaving those who stayed with more work or precarious conditions.

“People are getting restless, but, you know, people are happy that we’re pushing being what I call aggressive but responsible,” Baade said. “People want their contract and it seems like  the members are willing to get involved and they’ve been waiting for the opportunity to get involved.”

On March 11, OUCMT members lined the halls of the Oakland Center before a bargaining session with the administration as a second crisis action, now in the form of a silent protest. In both instances, they were joined by members of OUAAUP.

“What we’re fighting for [with] custodians is to have living wages,” Baade said. “We’re fighting for a market adjustment for the skilled trades for the first year, you know, to get them that raise above inflation.”

The university has not elaborated on the administration’s team experience at the bargaining table but has expressed support for workers.

“The University has been, and will continue to be, willing to meet on any of the dates the Mediator is available,” VP of Human Resources Joi Cunningham says. “Thus far, the Union has had more limited availability and also declined the University’s offer to meet virtually.”

With bargaining sessions ongoing, now with the help of a mediator, OUCMT expresses enthusiasm for the nearing of an agreement that improves working conditions on campus.

“We’re feeling somewhat hopeful that we’re going to be able to reach a deal,” Baade said. “Since our last crisis action at the Board of Trustees got them to move the most, hopefully, our most recent one gets them to move again.”