Word: hcecp
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Since Oct. 22, voices from all sides have been asserting opinions on the abrupt resignation of Professor of Economics Caroline M. Hoxby ’88 from the Harvard Committee on Employment and Contracting Policies (HCECP). This has drawn attention away from one strikingly clear fact: the data that has just been released by the presidential advisory committee chaired by Professor of Economics Lawrence F. Katz demonstrates beyond question that labor conditions at Harvard University are bad, and getting worse...
Before it begins to weigh the ethical implications of its findings and formulate policy recommendations, HCECP should release a second preliminary report with the additional data that are necessary for thoughtful public scrutiny. This report should be published on the Internet well in advance of a second public meeting in order to give the Harvard community time to consider all the facts and respond to them in a thoughtful...
...addition, HCECP should take seriously Hoxby’s charge that the committee has not heard a broad spectrum of testimony about Harvard’s labor policies. Holding additional public meetings at times convenient for students to attend would be a good start, but large gatherings—which tend to be dominated by the most vocal groups—are not the best forum for making sure that all sides are heard. Before preparing its final report, HCECP should hold meetings with additional interested groups, such as the Undergraduate Council, in smaller settings...
...Hoxby charges, the committee has so far only invited testimony from organizations that support the living wage, HCECP must now encourage testimony from and solicit input from groups with a wider range of viewpoints—Hoxby specifically mentioned the lack of testimony from the Employment Policies Institute, an organization that researches issues of entry-level employment...
Ultimately, the recommendations of HCECP will only be accepted as legitimate if the committee follows procedures that are transparent, principled and fair. In this spirit, HCECP should invite Hoxby to rejoin the committee after it has acted to improve its flawed process. Her rejoining HCECP would go a long way to restore the committee’s original promise of bringing Harvard to a consensus on wages. We believe that reaching such a consensus is possible. But it remains for HCECP to turn that possibility into a practical reality...