Current mailroom employees have years of experience of managing difficult logistical challenges unique to the University mailing environment – such as sudden shifts in demand at the beginning of each semester. The mailroom pulls off a minor miracle each year keeping packages organized during peak times. In the short term, bringing in a new contractor right before the start of a new semester could be extremely problematic come September.
The current mailroom staff has worked tirelessly for many years to provide outstanding service to both students and faculty, far above the terms of their employment on many occasions. Once, a disabled student needed several heavy packages to move in on a Sunday. Her mother tried to get help from reslife, but failed. Ultimately, a mailroom employee who lived in walking distance of campus resolved the situation by taking three trips with a hand cart between the mailroom and the student’s dorm. Firing excellent staff in order to save on wages would be a mistake.
In the long-term, while Ricoh may hire existing mailroom employees on a temporary basis to train their workers, the mailroom workers we know and love would be unlikely to be retained in the long term, and their experience would be lost, resulting in a degradation of services for everyone. Right now, whenever we pick up a package, it is usually found in short order. Bringing in Ricoh may save the University on cost, but we will pay the penalty in increased wait times and lost mail.
Graduate Labor Organization 