Maya McFadden Photo
Tom DeLucia (right) with fellow Local 287 employees: "The situation was never good, but the last two years have been truly deplorable."
Local custodian union President Tom DeLucia is calling on the Board of Education to rid New Haven of private companies for building and facilities maintenance in order to improve repairs at decaying schools across the district.
DeLucia spoke on behalf of New Haven Public Schools’ (NHPS) custodial workers union Local 287 at the Board of Education’s latest regular meeting last Monday, which was held at John S. Martinez School and online via Zoom.
DeLucia, who has worked for the Board of Education for 25 years, said that with regard to current facilities work offered to in-house custodial staff, things are “by far the worst the custodial department has ever been.”
He continued, “In 2020, I stood before the board imploring you not to privatize our last unionized supervisor position. At the end of that meeting, the board voted not to privatize the job, keep it a unionized city position. Fast forward four years later, and your city custodians are now entirely managed by a private company. It did not work then and has only worsened through the years.”
DeLucia’s words before the board came two months after the Board of Ed signed off on a $500,000 retroactive overtime bump for Massachusetts-based custodial contractor SJ Services. At that same meeting, the board also voted to approve the district’s yearly contract with company ABM, which provides facilities management and custodial and energy management services, for nearly $2 million. Read more about that meeting here.
His presentation also came as the district is struggling with school buildings in various states of disrepair, including damaged ceiling tiles, broken flooring, mildew-coated air vents, and mold spores in the library at New Haven’s largest public high school.
DeLucia said the lack of in-house union work and proper management has affected facilities, trades, and custodial jobs for building cleaning, landscaping, and snow removal opportunities.
“The situation was never good, but the last two years have been truly deplorable. My members’ morale is at an all-time low. I urge every board member to go to any school and speak with one of your building managers about their experiences with our management company, and they’ll echo what I’m saying here tonight,” he said.
He concluded that the shift to paying private facilities companies to be at the helm of the district’s operational needs impacts not only the union, but also school staff and students.
He said that when the union was called on more often, custodial staff like building managers were able to have unique relationships with principals, staff, and union supervisors. “They were able to call a supervisor and actually get a response and solution to their problem,” he said. “With the current company, principals must jump through the same hoops as custodians to get something done.”
He urged the board to reconsider its investment in such private companies. Provide the district’s custodial staff with opportunities to grow, DeLucia said.
“I’m not here to vilify our private management company but simply present the truth. And the truth is, we’re surrounded by excessive and unnecessary privatization,” he said. “Let our workers with essential experiences in custodial matters have room for advancement. If brought back in house, I assure you it will run more efficiently and be a more cost-effective operation.”
An NHPS spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment by the publication time of this article.
Watch the full meeting above.