Mayor of Houston recognises legitimacy of cleaners’ concerns
The Mayor of Houston, Annise D. Parker has told UNI that her administration “is supporting of the union’s salary concerns” and wants to see a “fair and just” settlement. Mayor Parker was replying in response to a letter from Adriana Rosenzvaig, Regional Secretary of UNI Americas, who urged the Mayor to support the Houston cleaners in their struggle for justice.
Super-rich Houston real estate companies are raking in profits while paying cleaners poverty level wages. UNI affiliates, led by SEIU, are demanding higher pay and better treatment.
Houston cleaners have been on strike since July 10 to demand fair pay, an end to discrimination of Latino workers and union activists and no further efforts to undercut provisions in the current collective agreement. Now, workers in 9 more buildings have gone on strike, doubling the number of workers who have walked off the job. These workers’ courageous efforts to stand up for a living wage have been met with retaliation and threats to withhold healthcare benefits. SEIU has filed legal claims to protest the illegality of these actions and the number of striking workers continues to grow.
Some of the richest corporations in the world, including JP Morgan, Brookfield, Hines and Barclays, are the largest real estate owners of commercial office space in Houston, Texas. Office rents in cities like Chicago are roughly the same as Houston but cleaners are paid double the hourly rate, and 3 times the annual pay in Chicago. Despite record profits by these companies, and paying inflated CEO compensation, janitors who clean Houston’s office buildings are paid less than $9,000 a year—less than half the US federal poverty level.
Support for the cleaners is huge. Religious and political leaders, community activists to national celebrities are speaking out and demanding fair treatment. Unions from all over the world are supporting the Houston cleaners. UNI affiliates from Brazil, Colombia and Mexico to Hong Kong and Australia to many European countries--Spain, Belgium, France, Denmark, Poland, Switzerland, the UK and Italy—have all expressed their concerns and called for a resolution to this exploitation. UNI affiliates have made their concerns known through telephone calls, letters and leafleting worksites and property owners’ offices. All of these UNI affiliates are united in the demand that cleaners in Houston deserve fair wages and decent treatment on the job. UNI Property Services will continue to support the cleaners until a final settlement is reached.