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University of Minnesota Teamsters picket, march against poverty wages

By staff

U of MN Teamsters standing up against poverty wages.

Minneapolis, MN – More than 300 University of Minnesota (UMN) service workers represented by Teamsters Local 320, along with members AFSCME, students, faculty, and others, protested on the school’s campus, August 30, to demand an end to poverty wages and abusive employment practices.

Local 320 represents 1500 workers at UMN who clean buildings, service dormitories, maintain grounds, prepare food, maintain HVAC systems, care for research animals, drive trucks, and perform other activities across the university’s five campuses. Many of the workers are Black, including immigrants from Somalia, Ethiopia and Eritrea.

According to a recent survey of more than 450 current and former UMN service workers, more than 62% reported not earning enough money to pay for basic expenses every month. Almost 12% reported experiencing homelessness at least once while working at the university.

#MinneapolisMN #PeoplesStruggles #Teamsters #TeamstersLocal320