Marine Biolab Housekeepers Will Travel To NYC, Seek Out MBL Trustees
Gary Borisy, CEO of the world-renowned Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) in Woods Hole, MA, has rejected a request to meet with eight veteran MBL housekeepers whose jobs are slated to be outsourced to a controversial Texas firm, Jani-King Intn’l, Inc. Jani-King is facing class action lawsuits in multiple states for violating workers rights and labor laws.
As a result, several of the housekeepers came to New York City on February 5 in hopes of meeting with members of MBL’s Board of Overseers, Board of Trustees, and possibly with Borisy himself at a posh cocktail/dinner party for MBL executives. MBL has recently raked in major federal stimulus money intended to create quality jobs in Massachusetts. Housekeepers say MBL executives are flaunting the intentions of that government support by destroying existing living wage jobs with healthcare benefits and by targeting their lowest-paid staff members. Outsourcing the jobs to Jani-King Int’l, Inc. would also likely be a cost-shift to taxpayers and the state, forcing Massachusetts to pick up the tab for Jani-King/MBL employee health care benefits.
Since Borisy will not meet with them on Cape Cod, the housekeepers will attempt to attend the cocktail/dinner party for the MBL Board of overseers and trustees at the luxurious University Club of New York. The housekeepers will also seek an audience with the overseers and trustees at their meetings scheduled for Saturday in New York.
The University Club event will include a lecture from John W. Rowe, M.D., chairman of the MBL Board of Trustees, on the topic of “Myths and Realities of an Aging Society.” The housekeepers say the title of Rowe’s lecture seems ironic. Three of the housekeepers threatened with layoffs are in their sixties and now face the prospect of unemployment on the eve of retirement.
All eight of the affected housekeepers are women and each has individually served MBL for at least 10 years. They are among the lowest-paid workers of all MBL staff. Since the housekeeping work is a year-round function at MBL, executives have released no estimates publicly on what the outsourcing and cost-shift to the state for employee health care might save the lab. Regarding the dependability and quality of the work provided by the current housekeepers, Human Resources Director Susan Goux wrote to employees in a letter dated February 3, 2010 that, “The housekeepers have shown a dedication to their tasks for a long time.”
According to media reports, Jani-King Int’l, Inc has allegedly been labeling employees as individual “franchisees” to skirt laws and labor regulations in several states pertaining to minimum wages, unemployment benefits, and overtime pay.
In addition to the New York event, the housekeepers and their supporters have scheduled a vigil and press availability in Woods Hole at noon on Friday, February 12 at the town dock on MBL Street.
“We have given many years of hard work and proud service to MBL and MBL has received a lot of taxpayer stimulus money that is expected to be used to create good jobs, not destroy them,” said housekeeper Noreen McNamara. “We think it’s reasonable for Mr. Borisy and his board to meet with us face to face and answer some of the questions that workers and the community have about this plan. We hope a closer look at the situation will help MBL executives make a decision that lives up to the reputation of MBL and the values of the community.”