After Months of Delay, Harvard Arboretum Workers Ratify New Contract

Arnold Arboretum workers unanimously ratified a new contract agreement with Harvard last Friday following months of months of impasse.

Arboretum employees have worked without a contract since November after Harvard and the Service Employees International Union 32BJ failed to agree on issues of compensation.

The new contract, which expires in November 2027, will increase worker compensation “by a compounded average of approximately 19.5 percent,” according to a union press release.

It will also give workers “more paid-time-off, provide them an increased clothing and shoe allowance, plus a bonus of $1,100 for full-time workers, while maintaining all previously secured benefits,” per the press release.

Rachel B. Lawlor, an Arboretum horticulturist and bargaining committee member, said “overall, we are very happy with what we have ratified.”

32BJ SEIU represents 18 full-time Arboretum employees, as well several seasonal employees. Five workers served on the bargaining committee.

As negotiations dragged on, arboretum workers continued to rally — first in November, then again the next month — advocating for quality-of-life improvements.

Union spokesperson Franklin Soults said though workers had “found themselves in a spot where Harvard was not offering what they felt they needed,” they still did feel like they were being heard.

The workers “felt very much that Harvard was willing to continue talking, even if a contract had expired,” Soults said.

Benjamin Kirby, an Arboretum arborist and union shop steward, said that despite “competition in negotiations,” the University was “really respectful.”

“They were open to listening to us and hearing the things that we were saying,” Kirby said.

“Throughout the process, obstacles are going to happen, and we’re not going to be able to agree to every single thing,” he added. “But even when tough decisions had to be made, they were made respectfully and communication continued.”

University spokesperson Jason A. Newton wrote in an emailed statement that “we are happy to hear that the SEIU Local 615 Arboretum employees ratified its contract.”

“It is a four-year deal, which we believe is fair and will serve the interest of both the Union and the University,” he added.

—Staff writer Aran Sonnad-Joshi can be reached at aran.sonnad-joshi@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @asonnadjoshi.

—Staff writer Sheerea X. Yu can be reached at sheerea.yu@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @_shuhree_.