facebook icon facebook icon facebook icon
  • About
  • ADS
  • Masthead
    • Editorial Board
  • Submission
  • Subscribe
The Wellesley News -
  • News
    • Contract ratified by Wellesley’s Maintenance and Service Employees Union
      Contract ratified by Wellesley’s Maintenance and Service Employees Union
    • News in Brief
      News in Brief
    • Wellesley adapts to end of race conscious admissions
      Wellesley adapts to end of race conscious admissions
    • Senate Report
    • News in Brief
  • Features
    • Professor Spotlight: Dr. Faisal Ahmed
      Professor Spotlight: Dr. Faisal Ahmed
    • Spotlight: New Professor Kathryn Winner
      Spotlight: New Professor Kathryn Winner
    • Spotlight: New Professor Lucia Nhamo ’11
      Spotlight: New Professor Lucia Nhamo ’11
    • Humans of Wellesley
    • Archives
  • Opinions
    • France’s Abaya Ban Unveils Its Own Misogyny
      France’s Abaya Ban Unveils Its Own Misogyny
    • Editorial: In defense of affirmative action
      Editorial: In defense of affirmative action
    • I am an NCAA champion: we should end college recruiting
      I am an NCAA champion: we should end college recruiting
    • Editorials
    • Letters to Editors
  • Arts
    • The SAG-AFTRA and WGA Strikes: What’s happening in Hollywood?
      The SAG-AFTRA and WGA Strikes: What’s happening in Hollywood?
    • Digging into Hozier’s Unreal Unearth: “De Selby (Part 1)” and the Population of Loss
      Digging into Hozier’s Unreal Unearth: “De Selby (Part 1)” and the Population of Loss
    • Summer Releases to Help Usher in Fall
      Summer Releases to Help Usher in Fall
  • Sports
    • Gauff and Richardson Shatter Expectations
      Gauff and Richardson Shatter Expectations
    • Student Athlete of the Month: Kennedy Mayo
      Student Athlete of the Month: Kennedy Mayo
    • No image
      What even is a BORG and why does it matter?
  • Multimedia
    • Photo of the Week
      Photo of the Week
    • “Stronger Together” Rally with Chelsea Clinton
      “Stronger Together” Rally with Chelsea Clinton
    • College Government Vice President 2016 End of the Year Report
      College Government Vice President 2016 End of the Year Report
    • Podcasts
    • The Wellesley Snooze
  • Projects
      • The News in Conversation
    • About
      • Contact
      • Join the News
      • Masthead
      • Editorial Board
    By Kenell Broomstein OpinionsOctober 24, 2019

    Wellesley College, it’s time to stand up for all women

    Wellesley College has been a remarkable launching pad for many successful women: among them, former Secretaries of State Hillary Rodham Clinton ’69 and Madeleine Albright ’59. Both politicians spoke this summer at Wellesley’s 2019 alumni celebration, inspiring fellow graduates to pursue greater opportunities.

    But Wellesley, in a departure from its original mission, is failing to prioritize key opportunities for women to work with equitable pay on its own campus. The College is updating and rebuilding the Science Center with help from a contractor that does not guarantee women equal pay nor opportunity.

    This failure has prompted female construction workers to launch a coordinated ad campaign to educate the Wellesley and the larger community about the disconnect between the College’s supposed values and subsequent actions. We will see ads on TV, newspapers, Snapchat, Facebook and on Google protesting Wellesley’s decision to discourage tradeswomen from the high profile project.

    Wayne J. Griffin Electric is a contractor that is notorious for its unfair treatment toward women employees. The IBEW Local 103, a Boston-based labor union, find the decision to work with an openly sexist company disappointing, especially from a college that claims to prioritize women’s advancement in the workplace.

    Griffin has a history of exploiting female workers by placing them on high-paying jobs to fill a diversity quota, only to pull women off projects and send them to lower-paying jobs once the quota is met. This creates a sizable pay gap.

    Female construction workers at IBEW Local 103 are always paid the same wage as their male coworkers, for the same work, erasing the pay gap completely. That’s why 96 percent of Massachusetts women electrical workers are members of IBEW Local 103: they know they are guaranteed equal treatment, training, compensation and space for advancement as men. 

    Unfortunately, Wellesley’s decision to work with Griffin means that none of these women will have the chance to work on the new campus development. 

    I want other women construction workers to have the same opportunities that I have had, and that means we must depend on employers like Wellesley College to partner with us. IBEW Local 103 provides opportunities for women who may not have a four-year college degree to grab a foothold in the middle class. High-profile institutions like Wellesley College — known for lifting up their students and alumnae — should help expand opportunities for these women too. 

    But right now, women construction workers find themselves asking, “What about me, Wellesley?”

    If the college wanted to support all women, they would start at home, by making sure women have an opportunity to help build the college as they build a middle-class life for their families, with good wages and secure benefits. Wellesley leadership should ensure every subcontractor on campus supports and validates Wellesley community standards: equal pay and opportunity for women. 

    Tradeswomen have reached out to Wellesley College President Paula Johnson, and have engaged with students and alumnae during this summer’s Reunion weekend. Alumnae were overwhelmingly supportive of our concerns.

    The pay gap is alive and well, in part due to contractors who fail to adhere to standards for pay equity. In 2018, non-union electrical companies paid women electricians about 86 cents on the dollar versus men’s pay, an unacceptable margin. Wellesley College should ensure equal pay for everyone working on their campus.

    The Wellesley College community should lift up all women, not just those who enroll in its classes. For more information on women construction workers’ desire to build Wellesley College’s Science Center, please visit WhatAboutMeWellesley.com

    Share on

    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Pinterest
    • Google +
    • LinkedIn
    • Email
    Previous articleClass Council campaigners impressively deviate from previous norms
    Next articleWe need to pay attention: Wellesley is failing its students with ADHD

    You may also like

    France’s Abaya Ban Unveils Its Own Misogyny

    Editorial: In defense of affirmative action

    I am an NCAA champion: we should end college recruiting

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    The Wellesley News

      SECTIONS

    • News
    • Features
    • Opinions
    • Arts
    • Sports
    • Multimedia
    • Projects
    • About

      ABOUT

    • Contact
    • Join the News
    • Masthead
    • Editorial Board

      RESOURCES

    • Advertising
    • Submission
    • Subscribe

      CONTACT US

    • Contact
    COPYRIGHT © 2023 THE WELLESLEY NEWS