Word: coops
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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Sometime this week the opposition slate will meet for the first time as a group to formulate its strategy and ideas. It faces the challenge of co-ordinating a campaign to draw a quorum of eligible voting members to the general membership meeting next Wednesday afternoon. The Coop by-law define a quorum as five per cent of the participating members of Harvard, M.I.T., and the Episcopal Theological School, or a little more than 1500 members. If, as in the past 85 years, not enough members show up, the stockholders' slate will automatically be elected. It appears likely, however, that...
...slate is depending on its plans for change to excite student interest. The structure and nature of the Coop, however, severely limits the chances for extensive or exciting transformation. As yet the candidates have no formal planks, but their general program calls for investigation into two areas: alleged employee grievances and proposals for developing a more effective community role...
...present Coop management is well aware of many of its problems and in most cases has already taken unpublicized steps to investigate, correct, or refute these complaints. The opposition charges that the Coop discriminates in its hiring practices, since there are few black salesmen and no blacks in managerial positions. Jay Wilson, personnel manager, however, states, "The Coop has actively recruited through the Action for Boston Community Development, the largest agency in greater Boston working in the poverty field. The Coop's advertising has been concentrated in Cambridge and the surrounding communities because this is our prime recruiting and market...
Related to hiring practices are the group's grievances over job training, wages, and unions. However, in these areas the Coop's record is remarkably good. For instance, between July 1967 and April 1968, the Coop ran five training programs for 75 disadvantaged youths recruited through ABCD at a cost of twenty thousand dollars. The Coop pays wages competitively with the other retail stores in the area. Contrary to the opposition's claims, no employee earns under the minimum wage of $1.60 per hour, while the average employee wage is $1.95 per hour. In addition, employees get liberal fringe benefits...
...Coop has been charged with trying to suppress union organization among its employees, yet there seems little documented evidence of this. Presently two unions have contracts with the Coop. The tailors belong to the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America and Coop drivers belong to the Teamsters Union Local 504. Three years ago the Teamsters tried to organize the sales clerks, but the movement died from lack of interest, not from any attempt by management to chill unionism...