LETTERS: Employees affected by outsourcing

To the Editor: As has been our past experience, we see this as yet another indication of the University administration's willingness to cut costs on the backs of loyal employees. While Executive Vice President John Fry claimed that a "significant majority" ("U. hands over facilites mgmt. to outside firm," DP, 10/9/97) of Penn employees would be retained by Trammell Crow, experience has proven otherwise. When Barnes & Noble took over the management of The Book Store, a significant number of African-American employees lost their jobs or were forced to accept retirement packages, even though there were reluctant to do so. We know that a large number of the 105 employees in Facilities Management are African American and we are deeply concerned about their future, despite Fry's pronouncements. The University has demonstrated, once again, a refusal to involve members of the African American Association in negotiating with potential business partners to arrive at fair and equal agreements for all. It would have been in the University's interest to do, in good faith, and in the interests of its employees. After all, is that not the mission of a university? James Gray Tom Henry African American Association u To the Editor: The DP ran another piece of accounting mythology from Executive Vice President John Fry, who claims the preservation of the child tuition benefit for people who move to Trammel Crow will cost Penn $4-5 million ("Angered workers will file lawsuit," DP, 10/22/97). Is this supposedly per year, or what? In any case, it's nonsense. The way to calculate this is as follows: consider the cost of running the University if these students are excluded. Then figure the cost of running Penn if they are included. The truth is, it makes no significant difference. Did Fry use a per capita extrapolation of the total cost of running the University? If so, that's wrong, because the basic infrastructural costs vary little with small changes in the student body -- one or two people make no measurable demand on any particular resource they share, like teachers, rooms, lab equipment, etc. The unrelenting disingenuous posturing about Penn's supposed generosity is truly wearing a bit thin, but then, I guess it pays better than being the chief academic officer. Alex Welte SAS doctoral student