An open meeting took place Wednesday, Sep. 20 in the Student Leadership and Involvement offices of the MUB regarding the mistreatment of student employees. Specifically, students not getting paid properly, or at all. Many accounts of missing or mishandled paychecks were reported on behalf of student employees at large. However, the event was sparked by issues involving those working in dining services now that Michigan Tech has contracted with food service provider Chartwells. The primary complaint is that many financially vulnerable students have been without paychecks since starting work the first week of classes.
Allegations involving student employment range from employees being forced to move hours to avoid overtime pay, a summer’s pay being provided paycheck by paycheck in the fall, and not getting paid for hours that would have been overtime due to budgeting issues. Initially, the floor was open to compiling these complaints. The meeting then turned into a back-and-forth conversation. Resident District Manager Mike Miller stepped in to address the complaints.. “We tried our best,” was Miller’s recurring point. When asked about those who rely on their paychecks to get by, he stated, “I’m sympathetic. There are delays, some because of matters involving names, we’re fixing this stuff. Everything is accounted for.”
Students at the meeting did not hesitate to bring up compensation, solutions to the problem, contradictions to Miller’s statements on Chartwells’ communication efforts, and questions about if those in management have been missing their paychecks too. Most answers were not relieving to the frustrated students who attended.
A second meeting is planned to take place Sep. 29 with hopes to keep respective parties accountable. For more information, students can contact Student Affairs and the Graduate Student Government.
4 Responses
This article is factually false. I was the lone employee who showed up to the meeting. No other employee showed up! The comments of Mike Miller were taken out of context. As far as I know, only one person has had a delay on their paycheck one time. This whole thing is because long term white employees who worked for the university are asked to do things differently and don’t want to. The union had made it incredibly hard to hire which results on heavily reliance of international students who have a work ethic and no entitlement.
So you really just made this a racial issue? And what you know is factually wrong and more than one person has had their paycheck delayed or not even been able to start their job. There are plenty of kids there with a work ethic. I don’t think they would be going to that school if they had not work ethic.
Multiple student workers showed up, including one who directly talked to and debated Mike and said multiple times that his, and other employees paychecks have been delayed multiple times. None of Mike’s comments are out of context if you actually read the article. The only thing factually false is you going on about the “evil union that ruins everything” just to kiss up to Mike. Get your head out the sand.
I stand by my comments. “International students” was the racist dog whistle. We all know what was the meaning behind using that language. I just said the quiet part out loud and called it out. Secondly, as for paychecks it is factually dishonest. Do you know how many people who start new jobs or have had jobs that they work that have delays or issues when transitioning? A lot! And in this instance that didnt even happen the ways discussed in the meeting. If it did, there are practices like clocking in and out with laws about compensation which at a university has large amounts of oversight. I actually am not trying to suck up to Mike which is an ad hominem attack and has nothing to do w the issues we are discussing even if i was. I am just in a position to know the truth and have the strength to call liars out or the misinformed. It is pretty simple! The labor pool here is small undereducated and lazy which I am totally sympathetic to. Why work hard for so little when others make so much and things are so expensive? I understand it; but, the only way it ends is if we all unite. I think the university, the students, the staff, and their subcontractors have integrity and are all trying to do the right thing