University of Missouri yet to decide on outsourcing custodial workers

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

More than a month has passed since the University of Missouri started reviewing proposals from private companies to take over its custodial services.

No decision has been made as of Monday.

The university sent out the request for bids for landscaping and custodial services in May to see if there would be enough cost savings during the financial crisis caused by COVID-19. MU decided in late June it would not outsource landscaping workers.

Originally, the university hoped to make a decision on custodians in late June or early July, as well, with the outside vendor taking over in early August. MU spokesman Christian Basi said leaders are aware this is taking longer than planned.

"Regardless of the decision, we want to make sure we give our employees an ample amount of time and notice, whatever the decision is," Basi said.

He said if MU decides to go with a private company, the timeline would be pushed back as well, hoping to give employees about a month of notice.

MU received 10 bids from companies hoping to take over custodial services. Basi said more information has come in and has be looked over thoroughly before a decision can be made.

"We have to make sure we cover everything, and that we don't just simply accept a low bidder, or that we say no, we're not going to accept any kind of bidding," Basi said. "We have to make sure that all of the proposals are encompassing of all of the duties we need on campus."

The companies that submitted bids are:

• HHS
• Sodexo
• SSC
• Arment Enterprises
• Atkins
• ABBCO Service Corporation
• ABM
• LGC
• HHM Facility Management
• SBM Corporation 

"These decisions are not being made lightly, and that's one of the reason we have been taking a bit longer because we don't want to make a decision in haste," Basi said.

The university has received backlash from the union representing many of the workers, as well as a call from the Faculty Council to not outsource the workers. As it gets closer to August, the union is criticizing the university's lack of a decision.

In a news release sent Monday, Laborers Local 955 says it has not received any word from the administration about the potential outsourcing.

"These workers are dealing with severe mental stress of not knowing whether or not they will go to work and be told that they no longer have health insurance," union business manager Ian Bedell said in the statement. "Our university is depending on their workers’ loyalty but showing them no respect or dignity in return." 

Markus Williams has been a custodian at the university for a little over a year. He says he hasn't been able to buy a new car or look for a new home.

"I don't know if I'll have a job to cover those expenses," Willams said. "It's been really, really hard this way not knowing what the next step is, not knowing what is holding for the future."

He doesn't think a month is enough time to find a job given the COVID-19 pandemic, but the most important thing for him is to know whether he needs to start looking for another job.

"Every day we are coming in not knowing if we are going to work for someone new or even have a job," Williams said.

As time goes on, Williams said the rumors have been spreading among his coworkers, but he has received little information about the situation from his supervisors or university leaders.

"The aura is just like sad you know, because we don't know what's next," Williams said. "There's a bunch of rumors circulating at the same time, there's a bunch of confusion, a bunch of unknowing."

Basi said the university is facing a historic budget crisis causing several cuts across the institution. As of Monday, the university has laid off more than 170 employees and furloughed over 3,600, with thousands more taking pay cuts.

"We owe it to the taxpayers, to our students, to make sure we are looking at every one of our costs again and again and again to make sure there are no more additional areas where we could cut costs and make sure we are not asking for any increases in tuition, for example," Basi said.

Basi said university leaders are close to making a decision but don't have a timeline for when it will be made.

Watch ABC 17 News at 9 and 10 for more on this story.