Councilor Knight Questions Tufts’ Elimination of Janitorial Positions

Tufts University and it’s janitorial service provider DTZ have recently announced plans to eliminate nearly 33% of the 91 janitorial positions contracted to service the University’s Medford/Somerville campus.

At a recent forum, Tufts and DTZ proclaimed that the elimination of these positions was necessary in order for these contracted services to remain sustainable, yet the major component of the plan is to invest in equipment and divest in the workforce. This coupled with the fact that the University is in the construction phase of a $49 million dollar expansion project leads me to question how eliminating 1/3 of the jobs held by a complement of some of the University’s lowest paid employees will accomplish the goal of sustainability. I have never seen a floor mop itself, or a trash barrel empty itself and while new equipment is certainly a welcome investment, it is no substitute for a dedicated, experienced and skilled workforce.

Tufts is a University with a multimillion dollar endowment and annual tuition costs that rank the university as the 24th most expensive school in the nation. It’s rather apparent that the proclaimed goal of sustainability is more about rhetoric and less about reality.

This is a University that was founded on the principles of social justice- I think it’s time for the Administration to take a look in the mirror and ask the question, “What would our founding fathers do?”

– Submitted by Medford City Councilor Adam Knight