After the university released a plan this fall to improve the workplace environment for employees of Facilities Management and Residential Facilities, numerous groups, including the university’s Black Faculty and Staff Association, student group Justice at Maryland and this editorial board, were in agreement — the report’s recommendations were insufficient. Nonetheless, university President Wallace Loh and his administration stood by the nine measures outlined in their report. But recently, another group has joined in the discussion, and it’s encouraging to see at least one branch of the university — University Police — actually plan to do something tangible about workers’ rights.
Safety is just one of many concerns voiced by Facilities Management and Residential Facilities employees, and rightly so — many campus buildings are cleaned late at night when few people are around, and a string of anonymous complainants have made allegations of sexual harassment. And while there haven’t been many reports of violent crime on the campus in the past year — the recent assault near Cecil Hall notwithstanding — BFSA President Solomon Comissiong questioned whether some safety issues go unreported, saying in an interview with The Diamondback: “Workers are dissuaded from making the initial phone call to police to report an incident … because they don’t have the permission of their supervisor. … The police said they want to change this, and they want to hear when the workers feel in danger.”
After meeting with student activists from Justice at Maryland, University Police have agreed to take steps to combat the problem. Officials said they don’t have the manpower to patrol inside campus buildings at night — as requested by Justice at Maryland — but police agreed to utilize checkpoints near buildings where workers check in for their 4 a.m. shifts.
The main thrust of complaints about worker abuse stems from the allegedly toxic work environment facing many employees. Workers who don’t trust their supervisors or the human resources department have few places to turn, so University Police are working to foster a better relationship with workers. Police spokesman Capt. Marc Limansky hopes an “open line of communication with staff members” will do just that.
And to make sure there aren’t any communication problems, the department is moving to address one issue that may contribute to the underreporting described by Comissiong: the language barrier. English is not the first language for many Facilities Management and Residential Facilities employees. The administration has also taken steps to alleviate the problem by planning to offer more English as a second language classes for workers.
University Police, meanwhile, are planning informational sessions — held in English and Spanish — to ensure workers understand their choices when it comes to on-campus safety. According to Limansky, police will discuss options such as police escorts and means of reporting crime, and they’ll also encourage workers to report incidents directly to the police to ensure they hear about incidents firsthand.
Overall, it’s a refreshing approach to worker complaints, especially after the administration’s report seemed so eager to sweep the issue under the rug. Limansky acknowledged uncertainty about the authenticity of claims made by Justice at Maryland, but it seems the department intends to foster a relationship with workers to hear their side of the story instead of just treat them as adversaries. Comissiong noted, “There are certain things you just don’t compromise on, and the public safety of your workers is one of them.”
If University Police are sincere in their efforts, it seems there may finally be some common ground in the fight to end worker abuse on this campus. Let’s hope Loh’s administration is taking notes.
