Inn, union at odds on whether Faculty Club hiring goal met

Though seemingly optimistic, the announcement hardly marks the end of a nine-month controversy regarding the fate of the 35 Faculty Club workers formerly employed by the University. Last March, the Faculty Club Board of Governors officially approved the facility's planned relocation from Skinner Hall at 36th and Walnut streets to the Inn at Penn, where the Club would be managed by Doubletree instead of the University. The University terminated the 35 Faculty Club workers but encouraged them to apply for new positions at the hotel. And while both the University and Promus officials say 70 percent of the employees who reapplied have been hired, the union representing Faculty Club workers continues to protest, accusing the University of giving it a raw deal. According to the University and Doubletree officials, 23 of the 35 terminated workers applied for positions at the Inn at Penn. Jobs were offered to 17 of those individuals and 13 have accepted and are currently employed at the new facility. Associate Vice President for Campus Services Larry Moneta said yesterday that the University is pleased with Promus' hirings and considers the situation resolved. "I think Promus acted like good citizens in attempting to identify a significant enough number of those individuals they would commit to hiring," Moneta said. "From our perspective, the University no longer operates the Faculty Club, the employees are no longer employees of Penn." And Jerry Daly, a spokesperson for Promus, said the company did its part. "Promus was delighted that they had the opportunity to interview the people and extend offers," he said. "I think the numbers certainly speak for themselves." But according to Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Local 274 spokesperson Charles Murphy, both the University and the hotel are obligated to accommodate all 35 of the displaced workers, adding that the pledge to hire 70 percent of them was never agreed to by the union. The union has vowed to continue protesting until it secures positions for all 35 workers at the new location. "The people should follow their work," Murphy said. "The dishes haven't changed, the silver hasn't changed, they still serve food in the same manner. Why were the other people not employed?" Murphy also disputed the figures released by the University, stating that all 35, not just 23, of the workers applied for jobs at the Inn at Penn. Meanwhile, University spokesperson Ken Wildes maintained that the numbers released by the University are accurate. "We know that all 35 employees did not apply," he said. "I feel quite confident in saying that those are the accurate numbers." Union members have been passing out flyers to support their cause in front of the Inn at Penn for the past several weeks, and about a dozen protesters attended the Inn's dedication ceremony last Wednesday, holding signs reading "Shame on U of P" and using megaphones to try to disrupt the ceremony. Murphy said the union will not give up until all 35 workers have positions in the new hotel. "We'll be here however long it takes to get this situation rectified," he said. The Faculty Club will be housed in the Inn at Penn for at least 10 years with periodic financial reviews to assess the financial appropriateness of maintaining the facility in the hotel. The grace period for evaluating the Club's financial performance has been extended to three years and the Club is guaranteed control over its space in the hotel between 10:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. on weekdays. Before and after those times, the hotel can use the space as it chooses.