Hundreds of janitors who clean office buildings in downtown Cincinnati will take a strike vote Saturday that would let bargaining representatives from the Service Employees International Union Local 3 call for a strike at any time. The union has been trying to negotiate a contract with eight janitorial companies that signed "neutrality agreements" with the SEIU in 2006.
The agreements led to the formation of a 1,200-person bargaining unit in Cincinnati and contract talks began in early March. Union boss Kevin O'Donnell said the next bargaining session is set for July 25, but talks haven't gone well thus far.
"One of the biggest issues in Cincinnati is wages," O'Donnell said. "A lot of the janitors here make $28 a day. They work part time and they make the minimum wage. They're pushing for wages you can live on. They want more working hours so that these stop being throwaway jobs and they become stable jobs."
The strike vote will take place at the Westin Hotel downtown on July 14 at 12:30 p.m.
(moneycentral.msn.com)
