Pomona College Workers Vote to Unionize

Workers at the Pomona College Dining Hall pushing to unionize took a major step forward by voting 57-26 in favor of forming a union.

The emotional vote took place Tuesday at a gymnasium on the Pomona College campus.

“I was there for the vote count and the workers were just overcome with emotion,” said Hal Weiss, a spokesman for the union. “They’ve been fighting for this for a long time.”

It’s not over yet. The university had five days from the day of the vote to accept the decision. The university has outwardly said they would not interfere with the effort to unionize.

According to a description of the voting, a group of workers and student and faculty allies, “erupted in emotional applause as the results were read.”

“The victory closes a long chapter in the workers’ struggle to gain union representation, which publicly began when they announced their intention to form a union in March 2010, union organizers wrote in a news release.

“While the college administration pledged to refrain from intimidating the workers, their three-year campaign was wrought with controversy,” organizers wrote.

The union campaign attracted national media attention and ignited a debate about the rights of immigrant workers, organizers said. In 2011, the administration reportedly instituted a gag rule barring students and workers from talking in the dining halls, organizers said. The rule was ultimately rescinded by the college, after the NLRB’s general counsel charged that it violated federal labor law, they said.

“This is as much your victory as it is ours,” said Crystal Flores, a Pomona cook, through a the written statement. She was speaking to a group of student supporters through a stream of tears, organizers said.  “We could never have done this without all of you.”

“Today is a victory for everyone at Pomona," said Isabel Juarez, a Pomona senior "This was a long and difficult journey, and I am elated to see how far we’ve come."

Students, faculty members and alumni sent letters of support to the administration, signed petitions and joined in protests, organizers said.

"The educational institution has been, in a sense, turned over," said Victor Silverman, a Professor of History at Pomona. "The workers are teaching us what it means to have a voice and to have power in this institution. You will continue to make this place a true institution of learning, and a place true to its values.”

"I hope that this is another step in the direction of healing the Pomona community," said Pomona alum Francisco Dueñas. "As an alum, I know the workers are a part of our community and that’s why I’ve always supported them."

The workers will become members of UNITE HERE Local 11, a union that represents 20,000 hospitality and food service workers in Southern California, organizers wrote. The UNITE HERE International Union represents food service workers at more than 100 colleges and universities in the US and Canada. While most college cafeterias are run by outside contractors, Pomona College oversees its own food service operation, organizers said.