SOUTH HADLEY — After working for most of the summer without a contract, 170 food service and facilities employees at Mount Holyoke College will receive significant raises now that a new deal has been ratified by the workers union.
The agreement includes “recognition for longevity,” and the largest raise is 24.5% over the life of the three-year contract, according to the 32BJ SEIU.
One hundred dining workers and 70 facilities workers “voted overwhelmingly” to ratify the contract, the union said.
“The essential workers at Mount Holyoke were only able to achieve these great victories by standing strong as one union,” Roxana Rivera, executive vice president of 32BJ SEIU, said in a statement. “We are grateful to the many students, professors, and local elected officials who stood with us in a great show of labor unity and support.”
The dining employees include lead cooks, kitchen assistants, culinary assistants and more. They will receive an immediate 5.5% raise retroactive to July 1 and 3% raises on July 1, 2023, and 2024. When adding the longevity incentives, the union said, more than half of food service workers will get an immediate 12% raise, while some will see an 18.5% boost.
“Despite their commitment to the college and hard work throughout the 2020 shutdown and beyond, these members’ wages were trailing behind those of workers at nearby colleges,” Rivera said, “and were failing to keep up with the rising cost of living in western Mass.”
Rivera said the “groundbreaking” new contract will allow the college to retain “skilled dining and facilities employees serving students for years to come.”
The 70 facilities workers, including carpenters, custodians and others, won raises of at least 5.5% retroactive to July 1 plus a 3% increase in each of the next two years. Depending on years of service and job title, some of the workers will see immediate raises of up to 12.97%, retroactive to July 1, the union said.
Brian Steele can be reached at bsteele@gazettenet.com.