DOWNTOWN CROSSING – When thousands of Boston-area janitors went on a three-week strike in September 2002, they demanded higher wages and better health care. Almost six years later, while cleaning the Park Street T station, Dominican Republic native Jose Lapaz remembered the strike but was reluctant to speak about his work conditions out of fear for losing job.
In 2002, Unicco, one of the cleaning companies said it would be impractical and unprofitable to give all janitors full-time jobs and health insurance. They did not return phone calls when contacted to comment on the effects of the strike.
John Guzman, Service Employees International Union’s lead organizer of the service center, said conditions for the workers have been improving. They have received full-time jobs and health insurance. The overriding issue in the dispute between the janitor’s union and 30 cleaning companies was health insurance, which was also tied to the demand for full-time jobs. As of Jan. 1, 2009, janitors at 12 bigger buildings will become full-time workers and receive family health insurance.
On Sept. 1, 2007, the union came up with a new contract for the janitors in which they received three sick days per year. He said he hopes by 2012, when the contract expires, the workers get six sick days.
Most of the janitors are immigrants from Latin America. With the 2007 contract, workers have been given a six-month period during which they can renew their work visas, temporary protective status or work authorization before they can return to work. During the period of acquiring legal status, the workers lose their sick days, Guzman said.
Guzman said the 2002 strike has been effective because it was the first strike in Boston and it got attention.
"Workers can have rights on their jobs and be treated with dignity and respect," he said.
He said the strike helped workers get paid $13.25 an hour where as before they earned about $10 an hour.
"I would like to see [janitors] get more sick days," Guzman said. "And if separated from employment, I would like to see them get paid."
Even though the strike helped janitors get more benefits, Guzman said some people were not happy with the changes. He said they wanted higher wages and more sick days.
"For us not to drive industry out of here, we take little pieces at a time," he said.
Guzman said he hopes the new contract will provide more benefits.
"Hopefully the next contract will be a new cake and we’ll go from there," Guzman said.