BuDS managers have revoked the formal warnings issued to workers last month for failing to sign a new contract, which introduced a no-homework-on-the-job policy for Blue Room cashiers and non-cashier employees across campus.
BuDS supervisor Yanely Espinal '11 said she thinks the repeal of the formal warnings came as a result of the petition she e-mailed to the management last week. Though the petition called to revoke the no-homework rule altogether, Espinal said it primarily took issue with the formal warnings, which workers received for failing to sign and hand in the new contracts on time.
Normally, two formal warnings are grounds for termination and can affect the size of bonuses, Espinal said, so workers take them seriously.
"A bunch of supervisors, mainly at the Gate, were really disenchanted with the entire policy, and we wanted to try to get it revised," Espinal said. "We thought that might be a little far-fetched, so we just decided to do a petition against the way the policy was implemented."
According to Espinal, workers received revised contracts in their mailboxes last month, which they were meant to sign and return to BuDS by a set deadline. But many workers were not aware of the form's purpose or the consequences for not handing it in on time, Espinal said, adding that nearly 120 students did not turn in the contracts.
"Some people were saying they didn't get (the forms) in their mailboxes," Espinal said. "Others didn't know if they didn't hand it in, it was going to be such a big deal."
BuDS general manger Alex Hartley '10, who declined to comment on why the formal warnings were revoked, said the warnings issued to employees who failed to return the new contract would not have affected the number of allowable infractions after which students can be fired.
"The formals NEVER were taken into account when someone's employment was concerned," Hartley wrote in an e-mail to The Herald. "And by 'formals' I mean formals that were written for failure to return the contract."
Hartley also wrote that BuDS has begun to encourage workers to share ideas and input with management.
"We now hold open forums. We just had our first two last week where workers and supervisors could come and communicate with management on any issue," Hartley wrote. "After spring break, I will be holding office hours for students to come and talk to me personally."
To avoid any repercussions before the formal warnings were revoked, many employees worked an extra 10 hours in addition to their regular shifts, Espinal said, adding that workers can now use that time to enhance their bonuses.
Espinal said management has done an "amazing job coming up with a new tactic to involve workers."
She said she is pleased that the formal warnings have been revoked, but doubts that the homework policy will undergo any revisions in the future.
"I think people have generally started to accept it, because I think that most people think that the inner management team isn't going to change it at all," Espinal said.
