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Explained: Workers get new contract How years of action led to Compass Group agreement By ISABEL FUNK
daily senior staffer @isabeldfunk
Madison Smith/Daily Senior Staffer
ETHS students climb up metal scaffolding to write messages of climate justice on the plywood above.
ETHS students demand action
More than 100 walk out of class asking city for climate justice By MAX LUBBERS and OLIVIA ALEXANDER
daily senior staffer @maxlubbers, @olivigalex
About 150 Evanston Township High School students walked out of their last class Friday afternoon, pressuring City Council to increase funding and support for the implementation of the city’s Climate Action and Resilience Plan. The protest was organized by
Positive cases double among non-undergrads Nor thwestern saw an increase in the COVID-19 positivity rate this week, with over three-fourths of the positive cases coming from nonundergraduate students. Roughly the same number of tests were taken this week as last. The positivity rate rose to 1.16% from last week’s 0.80%. Of the 57 positive cases, 44 are attributed to non-undergraduate students, which is double last week’s number. The University also completed its first week of required testing for a third of the undergraduate population, which yielded five positive tests. Of the remaining positive tests, staff accounted for six and faculty for three. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approved the administration of Moderna and Johnson & Johnson booster shots on Wednesday. People also have the option to receive a different booster shot from their primary vaccination series. Pfizer’s clinical trials found its two-shot series, administered at one-third the dose,
» See COVID, page 6 Recycle Me
ETown Sunrise, an environmental justice group, specifically calling for the council to allocate American Rescue Plan Act funding to CARP, which aims for the city to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Organizers and other environmental justice activists said CARP currently lacks the funding and staff to stay on track with its goals. ETHS senior and Sunrise Hub Coordinator Lily Aaron said the city must act now, rather than give
more empty promises. “We are literally walking out of our lessons so that we can teach them one,” Aaron told The Daily. “We are the voters of tomorrow, and it’s displaying that we care and we’re not going to let this slide.” Protestors walked from school to Fountain Square, where organizers encouraged students to call their alderpeople and Mayor Daniel Biss to demand ARPA funding be allocated toward CARP. Right now, the proposed 2022
city budget allotts around $80,000 toward CARP projects, but the city’s CARP Implementation Task Force recently proposed for $5 million in ARPA funding to go toward CARP projects. But the federal government does not recognize CARP initiatives as a preset category for ARPA fund use. Interim City Manager Kelley Gandurski has recommended including CARP projects
» See CLIMATE, page 6
After more than two years of advocacy, Northwestern’s subcontracted dining and service workers voted Oct. 18 to ratify a new contract with Compass Group, the University’s food service provider. The road to ratification was marked with cycles of reported layoffs and uncertainty, the sporadic withdrawal of health insurance coverage and dangerous pandemic working conditions. Workers advocated for better conditions alongside student supporters and union representatives through marches, petitions and discussions of a strike. The pandemic made their calls even more urgent. Here’s a timeline of the key moments that led to last week’s agreement. July 1, 2018: The University officially transferred its food service provider from Sodexo and Aramark to Compass Group. The transfer happened after NU’s contracts with Sodexo and Aramark expired in 2018. In April,
workers marched to present a petition to Sodexo and Aramark, their employer, asking for support during the transition. That May, Compass reached an agreement with UNITE HERE Local 1, the union representing NU’s subcontracted service workers, to guarantee job security for Sodexo and Aramark employees during the transition. The union announced that Compass agreed to incorporate workers and maintain benefits like seniority and health insurance. The agreement did not specify how long workers’ jobs would be retained or provide any details about the transition. The transfer officially occurred July 1 of that year. August 2019: Workers’ original contract with Compass expired. Until last week, workers hadn’t received a raise since their contract expired, according to the union. Mid-March 2020: Northwestern laid off hundreds of workers as campus shut down. According to the union, the University laid off 320 sub-contracted workers without pay.
» See DINING, page 6
Campus Gear celebrates 29 years in town Owner David Haghnaji offers a variety of merchandise, including NU apparel and gear By CLARE ZHANG
the daily northwestern @clarezhang_
As an undergraduate student at University of Illinois Chicago, David Haghnaji would play in poker tournaments all weekend. Other players took breaks, but he trained himself to stay up from Friday evening to Sunday morning. That commitment is the reason behind Haghnaji’s success, Campus Gear retail associate Ken Mick said. “He’s taken that ability and applied it to the rest of his life,” Mick said. Now, 63-year-old Haghnaji dedicates more than 16 hours a day to managing Campus Gear, a downtown Evanston store with two other branches. The shop is well-known for its narrow aisles overflowing with purple merchandise and Northwestern “N”s. Campus Gear’s ceiling-high shelves include everything from Northwestern Mom and Dad gear to teddy bears in purple shirts to NU-Arizona State hats. Haghnaji said he buys items in several styles and colors to provide customers with options. “My workers, everybody blames me because they say it’s hard to keep track (of everything),” Haghnaji said. “But I like offering variety.” When Haghnaji came to the U.S. in 1976, he didn’t intend to go into business. His goal was to get a bachelor’s degree in civil
engineering, then return to his hometown in Iran to teach at the University of Tabriz. But by the time he finished his degree at University of Illinois Chicago, Iran had undergone a revolution. His parents said it would be safer for him to stay in the U.S. Haghnaji went on to receive a master’s degree and a Ph.D., then looked for teaching jobs in the U.S. Because none offered the salary he was hoping for, he changed plans. Pivoting away from his engineering experience, Haghnaji and his cousin opened a boutique together in Carbondale. They made a couple of wrong moves, Haghnaji said, and his savings were gone within the first year. But they pushed on. “You have to put your 100% into business in order to make it work,” Haghnaji said. “Once this becomes a secondary thing, it means that it’s going to fail.” Haghnaji and his cousin then found a market among college students in the area who wanted Greek life merchandise and saw their opportunity. They opened another successful store in Wisconsin, this time focusing on college gear and Greek letters. Ultimately, though, Haghnaji left the store and started Campus Gear on his own. In the 29 years since, Haghnaji has pursued opportunities to open about 10 college gear stores in the Northeast and Midwest. Campus Gear’s three Evanston locations have stood the test of time, which Haghnaji’s employees feel is largely due to their employer’s extremely
Madison Smith/Daily Senior Staffer
David Haghnaji offers a variety of merchandise at his Campus Gear stores, including Northwestern apparel and sports gear.
hands-on work habits. “I’m a workaholic as well, but not as much as him,” Campus Gear manager Steve Mirzakhail said. “I was like, what do you have me here for?” This year’s booming business is making up for losses during the pandemic, Haghnaji said, during which he used up his life savings and borrowed as much as he could in order to keep the store open. Despite hardships over the past year, Mirzakhail said he has never seen Haghnaji lose his temper, saying his employer stresses the importance of patience. Mick said Haghnaji is generous with his employees, frequently treating them
to lunch and checking in with them. He bought Chinese food for everyone after a busy shift in the store during this year’s Homecoming weekend. Haghnaji said he enjoys campus events such as Homecoming, both for the business they bring and the people behind the purchases. Over the years, he’s witnessed multiple generations of NU students passing through the school. “You see somebody come in … and he says, ‘I used to come to your store all the time,’” Haghnaji said. “And now he’s bringing his son to school.” clarezhang2024@u.northwestern.edu
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