“The conditions are real bad. We need some respect around here,” College of William and Mary housekeeping worker Devon Futrell told a crowd of campus workers and student, faculty and community supporters.

The May 1 rally was part of an ongoing effort by the Tidewater Labor Support Committee, and by members of the Virginia Public Service Workers Union (United Electrical Workers Local 160), including Futrell, to change labor conditions at William and Mary for lower-paid staff.

After the rally, the group marched to the office of William and Mary President Gene Nichol, where a list of grievances was delivered to his office by the student supporters. The list included no pensions for outsourced state employees, long hours, lack of respect, understaffing, and no air conditioning in some buildings.

The rally occurred just a few days before the scheduled May 4 visit of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth to the William and Mary campus.

A letter delivered to President Nichol stated, “We’ve given you nearly six months to take concrete steps to clean up the college’s act, and you’ve done nothing but talk and consult. If we have not seen a meaningful effort to rectify the injustice on our campus by Friday morning, we will interpret it as a sign of bad faith, and will act accordingly, distinguished visitors notwithstanding.”

On May 11, President Nichol held an open meeting attended by over 300 employees. At the meeting, he listened to the concerns of workers, including Virginia Public Service Workers Union member Colette Roots, who told him that after an incident where no action was taken after she reported violence against her, “I felt like my life as a housekeeper didn’t mean anything.”

Nichol noted that he had raised wages at William and Mary, and promised to institute surveys, councils and other ways of making sure that workers’ concerns were heard.

For more information, contact Annette Joseph-Walker at info@vaue160.org or visit http://vaue160.org.