MEDIA RELEASE   

Contact: Shauna Ballo
For immediate release:                                                   Office: (503) 236-4949 ext. 216
March 1, 2008                                                                      cell:     (503) 704-5349
 
Hundreds of janitors, their families and community supporters held a rally today to launch a campaign for a new collective bargaining agreement for approximately 1,700 janitors who clean buildings throughout the Portland metro area.
 
The members of Service Employees International Union Local 49 are covered by one “master contract” with 11 separate employers that expires in June.  These janitors work in high end commercial real estate buildings like the “Big Pink” US Bancorp Tower, Portland City Hall, and Oregon’s largest employer, Intel.
 
Nearly 35,000 janitors throughout the West –  in California, Denver and Seattle – are all bargaining contracts this year that cover everything from wages to health insurance. In their new master contract, Portland janitors hope to secure affordable healthcare for their families, safe workloads and improved wages in order to provide a secure future for their families.
 
“We are looking to improve our job by having safe working conditions and basic benefits that help reduce turnover which helps keep buildings clean, safe and secure,” said Renato Quintero, who cleans buildings for SBM. “We are an important part of making this city work and we want to see some basic improvements in our wages, and affordable health insurance for our families.”