September 3, 2026, Tufts facilities workers rally and march along with elected officials and community supporters at Tufts University Medford campus.~Photos courtesy 32BJ SEIU

Bargaining committee for 100 groundskeepers, skilled maintenance workers, and licensed trades workers is now authorized to call a strike at any moment

Tufts facilities workers at an outdoor rally on the Medford campus late Thursday afternoon voted unanimously in favor of striking if necessary. Together with a similar vote held earlier this week by facilities workers at Tufts’ Boston campus, the Medford vote now empowers the bargaining committee of the workers’ union, 32BJ SEIU, to call a strike at any moment. The bargaining committee sought this authority after months of negotiations made little progress on a new contract for the unit of 100 Tufts groundskeepers, skilled maintenance workers, and trades workers, which has been working without a contract since July 1.

September 3, 2026— Tufts facilities workers rally and march along with elected officials and community supporters at Tufts University Medford campus.

“Voting ‘yes’ does not mean we walk off the job today; voting ‘yes’ does not mean negotiations are over,” Tufts master electrician and bargaining committee member Pat Keith told the crowd of about 175 workers and supporters. “Voting ‘yes’ means giving our bargaining committee the power and the leverage we need when we sit across from Tufts. It shows administration that we stand shoulder-to-shoulder, united, and that we are fully ready to strike if that is what it takes to get a fair contract.”

Since negotiations with the university started in the spring, the bargaining committee of workers and union staff has sought an agreement that closes the widening gap between the unit’s lowest and highest wage earners; relieves workers of their disproportionally large percentage of health insurance costs, compared to similar workers at other universities; and allows workers access to the 32BJ Legal Fund, which provides low-cost legal assistance for civil and immigration issues.

Tufts facilities workers rally and march along with elected officials and community supporters at Tufts University Medford campus.

“We should not have to choose between paying the bills and buying groceries,” said Tufts maintenance mechanic Jackson Francois at the rally. “Then there’s healthcare. We pay more for our healthcare benefits than workers at other universities—including some other SEIU members. So we’re getting hit twice: Tufts won’t pay us enough, and our healthcare costs take even more from our paychecks.”

“What I know, as a faculty member, is right now this university is in a surplus,” said Julia Svoboda, president of the Tufts chapter of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP). “A $29 million surplus, and they’re telling you to your faces that they don’t have the money to pay you – absolutely disrespectful…But we are here, we see you, we know what’s going on, and we support you.”

Councilor Bears and Rep. Erika Uyterhoeven

Svobada was joined by fellow AAUP member Helen McCreary, who also represented 509 SEIU. Other attendees included MIT facilities workers and Graduate Student Union members, Massachusetts State Representative Erika Uyterhoeven, Somerville City Councilor (and former 32BJ SEIU member) Will Mbah, and Medford City Councilors Justin Tseng and Zac Bears.

“I am so proud that everyone is here today to stand up for the facilities workers, who deserve fair pay and a fair contract, and the right to afford to be able to live in communities like Medford and Sommerville,” said Bears, president of the Medford City Council, which recently adopted a resolution in support of the Tufts facilities workers, as did the city council in neighboring Somerville.

Councilor Mbah

Despite the palpable frustration with the university, the broad display of support lifted the rally’s mood. As Jackson Francois put it,  “At the end of the day, we’re not asking for luxuries; we’re asking for a livable wage and a fair contract. Tufts has the resources to do it, and we have the solidarity to demand it.”

September 3, 2026— Tufts facilities workers rally and march along with elected officials and community supporters at Tufts University Medford campus.

-32BJ of the Service Employees International Union