University Daily Kansan
Mondav. November 19, 1979
2
Glover advocates legal action against AMS
BY PAMELA LANDON and BEN JAMIN IONES
Staff Reporters
State Rep Mike Gliver, D-Lawrence, said yesterday he would recommend to the state American Civil Liberties Union legal panel that the ACUL take KU custodians' speech and peaceful assembly by American Management Services to court.
Glover, who is one of six attorneys on the panel, was asked last week by the panel to conduct an investigation into the custodial accident in the Kansas law of possible legal action.
The legal panel decides which civil liberties cases the ACLI will take to court.
"As far as I'm concerned, there's more than just a reasonable possibility that these people have been harassed and kept from associating," he said.
GLOVER SAID he would present this recommendation to the judge, and the panel will decide on the basis the information presented by Glover whether to take the custodians' case to court.
He said the case could be taken to either federal or state court.
"The case would be grounded in principles of freedom of association and free speech." he said.
Rodger Orkue, University director of support services, has said he thought Custodians Action Committee allegations of harassment by AMS were informed.
Glover said he was compiling a summation of alleged First Amendment violations by AMS against KU custodians.
CAC. A GROUP OF 40 to 50 Lawrence
campus custodians, has said that AMS tried to harass custasians on an Oct. 3 meeting by looking in the windows, when they got into the meeting. But at least the names of the custasians were left the meeting.
The CAC also has alleged that AMS later threatened and harassed custodians for their involvement with the CAC.
Dave Baldwin, AMS director of housekeeping, has said that AMS has not threatened or harassed anyone for involvement in any group.
Glover said he had been monitoring the custodial situation at the University for the past two years. He said it was very possible that violations of freedom of speech and freedom of assembly occurred.
AFTER HIS INVESTIGATION of the situation, he said, he was more convinced that such violations had occurred.
Steve Soiff, CAC support group member, said that the group did not want to treat this conflict between the custodians and the University and AMS through the courts for
"But we have to find the proper legal
channels to force the University to take cognizance of the situation," he said.
Mike Davis, University general counsel,
has said he was confident the custodial
situation could be resolved without outside
assistance.
Soffer said that CAC's support group would meet today with a representative of the organization in the U.S. Department of Justice in Kansas City, Mia, to indicate the role the department would play.
IRVING VANDUYNE, CAC co-chairman and KU custodian, was suspended last Wednesday for allegedly refusing to attend a regularly scheduled employee meeting.
VanDuyne has denied the charge and has said he would appeal his suspension to the Civil Service Board in Topeka.
A second custodian, Axley Maxwell, CAC co-chairman, received a warning from the personnel department for alleged use of duty. He also has denied the charge.
The contract AMS has with the University comes up for renewal Dec. 1.
services during the past two years. Orchee
said facilities operations had records
showing that only about $210,000 had been
paid to QMS.
federal agency to distribute justice on this campus."
The speakers also accused the administration of concealing records from public access and siding with AMS.
At a CAC rally on Friday, CAC support group members accused the administration of torturing prisoners "possibly" to avoid the allegations the CAC has brought against AMS and the ad vice.
Gary Howe, assistant professor of sociology and political science at the group was discussing the matter with the Department of Justice. He said if the administration did not change its approach to the group.
Rodger Oroke, head of Facilities Operations, said he had no comment on the number of custodian dismissals.
HOWE SAID THE CAC had obtained records that indicated 38 workers had been forced out of their jobs since American WWII. They also lacked the ability for keeping the campus clean Dec. 1, 1977. Personnel department officials have said their records showed that only eight officers were present.
Howe also said at the rally that state authorities have said that more than $700,000 has been paid to AMP for their
HOWE ALSO REPEATED past CAC allegations that AMS was increasing its profit margin, and that the agency off the job in violation of federal and state regulations defending their rights. He accused AMS of "mismanaging works by giving them jobs they can't perform."
At the rally, DanVayne a worker who had been asked to sweep the steps of Wescow even though his supervisor knew he had no balance of depth perception.
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