More than two dozen students at Georgetown University recently ended an eight-day hunger strike to get a “living wage” for janitorial workers there. Organized by the Living Wage Coalition, the strike was the culmination of a three-year effort to get an hourly rate of $14.93 for janitorial staff, most of whom are immigrants from El Salvador. The 26 protesters who took part in the hunger strike lost a total of 270 pounds. After nine days, university officials agreed to increase the rate of janitorial workers from $8.50 to $13 an hour by July 1. On July 1, 2006, that rate will increase to $14 an hour.
