College Feud Goes To N.L.R.B.

Since hiring a private contractor last month to provide custodial services, Southampton College has been enmeshed in a labor dispute that has included allegations of racial bias and the filing of a complaint against it with the National Labor Relations Board.

Laro Maintenance Service of Bay Shore took over maintenance of the college's facilities on Jan. 17. All of the college's 17 custodial workers, who are unionized, were shifted to Laro's employ. The workers were informed that they were no longer employed by Long Island University four days before the change became effective.

College officials said the change was necessary to improve the quality of maintenance and noted that there had been no staff layoffs.

Betrayal Or Solution?

The union representing the custodial staff, United Industrial Workers Local 424, has been negotiating with the college and the new employer to insure job security and benefits for the transferred workers. Critics of the move allege, however, that it was a betrayal of loyalty to longtime employees.

"There are no guarantees to layoffs, but the firm agreed to pick up 100 percent of the existing work force," said Tim Bishop, college provost.

Mr. Bishop said the college had not been able to get the level of cleanliness in the buildings that was appropriate. "Hopefully, with a seasoned management team with better equipment, they will do a better job," he said.

"Custodial care has been experiencing ongoing problems and we're trying to address the problem," he added. He stressed that the decision had not been a "cost-saving" measure.

Accord Reached

Kevin Boyle, the general executive vice president of the union, said it had filed a complaint with the N.L.R.B. alleging that the college had failed to appropriately notify the employees of the change and to bargain with the union over the decision and its impact.

However, Mr. Boyle said the union would withdraw the complaint if the college and Laro Maintenance abided by agreements reached in discussions last week. He said the union received assurances from both parties that the workers would not lose any wages, benefits, or pensions and there would be no layoffs.

While satisfied with the assurances and noting that the provost had been "very supportive" of the custodial staff in the discussions, he criticized the "very inappropriate way" the college had dealt with longtime employees, only telling them about the change at the last minute.

Called "Bogus"

Christopher T. Cory, a spokesman for Long Island University, of which the college is a part, termed the N.L.R.B. complaint "bogus."

He said the collective bargaining agreement with the union stipulated that the college had the right to contract out custodial work, provided the new employer assumed the terms of the collective bargaining agreement. (Mr. Cory, the university director of public relations, is married to The Star's editor, Helen S. Rattray.)

The allegations of racial bias were expressed by Melissa Arch Walton, a student at the college and recent candidate for the State Assembly, who, with Corey Dolgon, a professor at Friends World College, has organized the Coalition for Justice in response to what some students, faculty, and employees see as a racially motivated decision.

Bias Denied

Ms. Walton claimed the transfer of the custodial workers had been made in response to union complaints alleging discriminatory treatment and mismanagement over the past several months. She said that the workers are African Americans, Latinos, Native Americans, and women.

The provost emphatically denied that the change was racially motivated. Contracting with private firms "is extremely common at higher educational institutions," Mr. Bishop said. "Hundreds and hundreds of colleges are doing this around the country." The campus book store is operated by Barnes and Noble, it was pointed out, and food service on campus also is managed privately.

Mr. Cory also refuted Ms. Walton's claim, saying, "The college's action had nothing to do with anything other than that we weren't getting our money's worth."

Federal Case

Mr. Boyle, the union representative, said that while there may not have been formal union grievances, there had been several complaints of racial discrimination brought to the college's attention. He cited one particular case that has been pending for a year or two, which he said was now being adjudicated at the Federal level.

Mr. Cory noted that the pending case, brought by an employee who was suspended after being arrested on felony charges, had been arbitrated in the college's favor before going to court. In the only other discrimination complaint of which he was aware, he said, a Federal court fully exonerated the college.

Some students have supported the custodial staff with petitions and flyers posted throughout the campus. They expressed unease at the thought that new workers they don't know may be given keys to dorm rooms and asserted that it was hypocritical for the college to market itself as a family and a caring place and then "fire" employees who have worked for the college for up to 30 years.

"I have no intention of changing at this time," Mr. Bishop said. "We are going to try this firm, and, if it doesn't work out, we will try something else." P.R./S.M.