Houston Custodians Approve New Contract

Thousands of Houston contract custodians narrowly avoided a strike last week as they tentatively agreed on a two-year contract with the city’s private janitorial companies, Houston Public Media reports.

The workers, members of Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Texas, were seeking an hourly minimum wage of US$15 along with additional paid sick days and leave. Union officials say a majority of the 2,800 custodians the union represents work only part-time making as little as $10.75 under the recently expired contract.

SEIU Texas President Elsa Caballero said that the new tentative two-year agreement is an encouraging step in the right direction. The union will make specifics of the new contract public after all members have had an opportunity to ratify it.

“After a record marathon negotiation, we were able to reach a tentative agreement that I think addresses many of [the members’] concerns,” Caballero said. “If we don’t make it a point that all work needs to be valued, and all work should be able to pay enough so that you can take care of yourself, then what are we doing?”

The custodians have been threatening a strike if contract negotiations fell through. Houston janitors have held two large-scale strikes in previous years —in 2006 and 2012.

The precedent for a $15 minimum wage for workers has already been set in Houston. The city council raised the minimum wage for all municipal employees—including custodians—to $15 an hour last year. In February, Mayor Sylvester Turner signed an executive order to raise the hourly wage for Houston’s airport workers to $15 by the end of 2023.