On Friday, June 14, many of Wesleyan’s custodial workers gave up their lunch hour to protest employee cuts and demand better working conditions. The custodians protested on the lawn outside President Roth’s house due to news that Sun Services, the contractor who provides Wesleyan’s custodial services, plans to cut 13 of Sun’s 60 workers and divide up responsibilities among the already-overburdened staff. According to The Middletown Press, the protest included about 40 of Sun’s 60 employees, who were joined by cafeteria workers in “UNITE HERE!” t-shirts in solidarity.

Their demands, directly quoted from The Middletown Press are as follows:

When it became clear that Roth was not in the office, the group struck camp and marched around the green to the president’s residence. They brought with them letters for the administration, Sun and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, demanding new requirements to reduce their cleaning workload to a maximum of eight houses a day—or five a day in the case of larger houses.

The Sun employees also requested that each worker not be required to clean more than three dormitories per day.

They also charge that Sun has demanded they work in high-rise dorms using noxious chemicals without gas masks or ventilation fans, and that workers have started to fall ill. 

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