Long-Time Cheyney Cafeteria Workers Forced Out

PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 8, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- This summer, 27 long-time employees, who had been serving the students and staff in the cafeterias at Cheyney University, had to face unexpected news:  jobs they had for decades were going to others.

On July 5, 2014, Cheyney University, America's first institution for higher learning for African Americans, entered into a contract with Virginia-based Thompson Hospitality Group, a minority-owned food service company. This new food service provider made it clear that only three of the 30 veteran employees "met the standards" of their company and would be offered employment. The experience of the rest of these long-term employees didn't matter to Thompson. These 27 employees, all of whom are African Americans, have tenures at the university that range from two years to 38 years.

Thompson Hospitality Group, which has a strategic alliance with the British food service conglomerate Compass Group, took over the contract previously held by a Pennsylvania company, Metz & Associates. Metz had the contract with Cheyney University since 2003 and had maintained a good working relationship with the 30 workers and their union.

When it got the contract, Thompson "cleared out" the experienced staff and has since begun to hire employees from Labor Ready, a temporary work center specializing in providing low wage, temporary workers with no benefit coverage.

"We have no problem with an incoming company hiring new employees who are local and need jobs," said Richard Minter of Local 274 of the Philadelphia Joint Board, Workers United. "But what sense does it make to send experienced workers to the unemployment lines?"

The union also has grave concerns that this appears to have been a no-bid contract with no public review and no vote taken by Cheyney board members, who were not included in the process.  Despite repeated requests, no information on the contract bid process has been provided to the union by the university president, Dr. Phyllis Worthy Dawkins.

"We have no knowledge of the contract terms at this time. We know that these contracts often run for a one-year period initially, with a renewal for terms of up to 8 years," says Minter. "It would be helpful for the public to know these answers."

"Cheyney is our country's oldest Historically Black College," said Jack Rushton, the President of Local 274. "How can Cheyney University claim to have as part of its mission to increase opportunities for African Americans and yet allow Thompson to purge this entirely African American staff?"  

Although transitions in food service providers such as these are common in this industry, Rushton reports that this situation is a rare one.

"One provider loses a contract and another contractor wins one," he said. "But NEVER have we known a contractor to fire the entire work force! The workers are normally offered jobs with the new vendor, but not this time. These employees are cruelly discarded, with no consideration of the impact on their lives. I don't know what the leaders of Cheyney University were thinking in allowing this to happen."

This is the fifth food company transition that the unionized workers have faced at Cheyney. Each time, the work force and the worker contracts have remained intact.  

Lynne Fox, Manager of the Philadelphia Joint Board, said the union would be starting a campaign to "seek justice" for the fired workers.

"The Philadelphia Joint Board, Workers United, intends to seek justice for these 27 long-term employees by asking Cheyney students, the local community, other unions and local elected officials at the county, state and federal levels, as well as members of the Board of Cheyney and Cheyney Alumni, to intervene on behalf of these employees," said Fox. "We will also be following Thompson Hospitality Group to their other locations, and other potential locations."

Fox is asking interested persons to call the University's president, Dr. Phyllis Worthy Dawkins, at 610-399-2220, and ask her to have Thompson do the right thing and reinstate the workers. Supporters of justice for Cheyney workers can also contact Thompson Hospitality and the Compass Group on their websites:  www.ThompsonHospitality.com and www.Compass-Group.com.  

"I can't imagine that, if our Delaware and Chester County leaders knew about this situation, they would approve," she said. "It should be unthinkable for them to allow Cheyney and Thompson to put their constituents out on the street after so many years of loyal service. The level of cruelty and disrespect shown to these workers is impossible to understand, especially coming from Cheyney University."

The Philadelphia Joint Board, Workers United represents over 3,000 workers in food service, commercial laundries, apparel & textile manufacturing, airport workers and distribution workers in Philadelphia and surrounding counties and South Jersey to Atlantic City.

SOURCE Philadelphia Joint Board, Workers United