Janitors at the Park Meadows Mall won national coverage of their one-day strike for civil rights on Tuesday, Sept. 9. The strike at the suburban Denver mall, which is owned by General Growth Properties, was part of a wave of protests at more than 20 GGP malls nationwide.

The Park Meadows janitors struck to protest the threats and intimidation they’ve faced for more than a year while working to form a union. “Every worker needs liberty on the job so that we can speak up and make things better for working people and our neighborhoods and communities,” said Roberto Aragón, a Park Meadows janitor.

The cleaning contractor that employs the janitors, the Millard Group, was roughed up in a number of stories about the strike, including this article on CNNMoney’s website as well as local TV coverage on Fox 31 and Univision.

The Park Meadows janitors received strong support from the community at an afternoon rally that climaxed the strike. Speakers included Scott Kwasny, director of Colorado Jobs with Justice, and the Rev. Malcolm Himschoot of the United Church of Christ.

The janitors returned to work without incident Wednesday and are continuing their fight for justice. To learn more, go to: www.insideggpmalls.org.

Denver-area janitors successfully negotiated a new four-year master cleaning contract—the first contract to cover the entire Denver Metro area—which includes virtually every office building in the region. The agreement is mutually beneficial to both janitors and cleaning contractors, and is also good for tenants and building owners because it adds new incentives for long-term employment (which, in turn, increases the quality of service).

"There were a lot of us who started crying when we heard about the contract,” said Rita Jaramillo, an SEIU member and janitor for 12 years in Downtown Denver. “Wages are going up, and there will be 500 more people eligible for family health care. This is really going to change people’s lives—people who used to have to make impossible choices between food and medicine.”

Highlights of the new contract include:

Average annual salary increase of 4%.
Workers won across-the-board salary increases that average 4% throughout the Denver Metro area. A worker in downtown Denver making $10 per hour (after 18 months on the job) will end up making $11.60 at the end of the contract.

Expansion of family health care benefits at NO COST to workers.
There are currently 220 workers eligible for full family health care benefits (only full-time workers in downtown Denver were eligible under the current contract). At the end of the new contract, 500 more workers will be eligible for full family health care benefits in Cherry Creek, Aurora and the Denver Tech Center .

More full-time jobs.
All workers in buildings over 250,000 square feet will be automatically converted to full-time by 2012. More full-time jobs will eliminate the need for many to have second jobs and will allow workers to spend more time at home with their families.

Click on the links below to read stories about the new partnership between janitors and cleaning contractors:

Rocky Mountain News
Denver Post
Denver Business Journal

WHAT: A march through downtown Denver
WHEN:  Tuesday, June 17 at 3:30 p.m.
WHERE:  Civic Center Park – Corner of Broadway & Colfax

Where: Denver Tech Center --Belleview Light Rail Station
When: June 5, 11:30 AM

Call 303.478.0900 for more information.

Go here to see photos of our May 22 event.

Where: 17th and Arapahoe
When: 3:30 PM, May 22

Call 303.478.0900 for more information.

Here is some footage from our last event:

We will meet again on May 22 at 3:30 PM to continue our support, at a location to be determined. Keep checking this page for updates.

Since the beginning of the current contract, which expires this summer, membership in the property services division of SEIU in Denver has grown by hundreds of workers. Today, more than 80% of large commercial office space in Denver is cleaned by these workers. The current contract negotiations will be the first that encompass the entire metro area.

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