Local 26 to Open Contract Bargaining

Members of Local 26, representing Harvard's dining hall workers, will meet with the University today to begin contract negotiations.

High priorities on the union's list of demands include an unspecified cost-of-living allowance, a 13 to 20 per cent wage increase, additional holidays, and improved fringe benefits, Fred Walden, vice president for Local 26, said yesterday.

Silence

Edward W. Powers, associate general counsel for employee relations and chief negotiator for the University, declined to comment on the demands yesterday and said he would not negotiate with union representatives if details of the negotiations were made public.

"I feel all the demands are completely reasonable--the University may not agree with us, but it's too early to tell," Richard Coleman, attorney for Local 26, said yesterday.

The list of demands submitted by the dining workers calls for either a 13-to 20-per-cent wage increase or an across the board raise of 50 cents to $1 an hour.

The present dining hall workers' contract expires June 19.

The union is seeking full medical and dental coverage at no cost to employees and an improvement in the retirement plan, Walden said.

The workers will also request safety soles instead of toes on protective footwear and an increase in safety shoe allowance to $20.

Retroactive

Walden said the University offered a three-year pact with successive 10-, 9- and 8-per-cent wage increases across the board. The proposal included no additional fringe benefits, but the University said if the union accepted the pact without entering into a bargaining process it would make the pay increase retroactive to April 1, Walden said, adding that the union membership voted down the proposal.

"We'll get more perspective on our prospects when we start negotiating. In view of the other settlements this year, though, I think it's going to be tough," Walden said.

The Maintenance Trade Council, the police, and the Harvard University Employees Representative Association have all settled for a similar "10-9-8" three-year contract.

Hoping

"I'm optimistic--I heard the University's having a $250 million fund drive, and I'm hoping they can allocate some funds toward our demands," Edward B. Childs, chief shop steward for Harvard's Local 26, said yesterday.

Other miscellaneous demands the dining workers' representatives will submit include an improved uniform maintenance allowance, lower parking rates, and a union shop provision, which would entail replacing union employees who leave with other union employees.