UW union workers push for immigrant sanctuary

Several unions at the University of Washington are calling for stronger protections for immigrants and minority groups. It’s part of a so-called sanctuary movement on campuses across the country following the presidential election.

TRANSCRIPT

Altogether, the unions represent about 15,000 at the University of Washington and the attached hospitals.

Paula Lukaszek’s union includes custodians, food service workers and hospital support staff. She said about half the members are immigrants, and they want a clear message from UW leadership.

Lukaszek: “That they’re not going to be harassed. No one’s going to come in and ask for their ID. And people aren’t going to have to prove who they are.”

Since the election, UW President Ana Mari Cauce has reiterated strong support for immigrants and other vulnerable groups.

But the unions are pushing a more detailed plan to make the UW a sanctuary campus. It lists seven ways the school can protect people who may face discrimination or may not have legal status in the U.S.

Number one: Don’t share student or staff identification with federal immigration agents, and create a data retention and destruction policy. Another: Don’t allow immigration agents on UW property and provide training on campus for this possible situation.

Union leader Tom Small, said his group is politically divided. But they back this sanctuary plan as a way to support everyone at UW and hold the school accountable.

Small: "We want the university to understand that the unions will remain here to be the conscience of the university as we move forward in this new administration. The times are interesting, the times are strange."

Only a handful of campuses across the country have adopted the "sanctuary" label. University of Washington is not one.