President Neil Rudenstine says students have a right to disagree with the university's decision, but not to impose their will. He agreed to set up a faculty committee to study the issue, but said he won't negotiate while the building is occupied. Workers have been less conspicuous than students and even outside union members at some recent rallies, though janitors at the Harvard Medical School held their own rally Thursday in Boston. Some blue-collar workers have said they're nervous about being too outspoken, and others have said they're simply too busy working. But in interviews with more than a dozen Harvard blue-collar workers Thursday, all said they were grateful for the students' efforts.
Grocery stores go up.
Clothing stores go up. Rent goes up. Jean Phane, a janitor at the medical school campus in Boston, said workers there are drawing inspiration from the students on the main campus in nearby Cambridge. On Wednesday, nearly 200 dining hall workers whose contract expires June 19 unanimously voted to authorize a strike if their demands aren't met in a new contract. Dan O'Connell, a Harvard custodian of 25 years who left school after ninth grade to care for his family, says he's taken advantage of Harvard's education programs and is currently taking a computer class.