Wage Committee Reps Picked

Benjamin L. McKean ’02 and Matthew Milikowsky ’02 were chosen last night in Loker Commons to serve on the Katz Committee to investigate workers’ wages at Harvard.

The Undergraduate Council’s Student Affairs Committee (SAC) voted to appoint McKean and Milikowsky to the 20-person committee, which will consist of faculty, administrators and students. They were selected over 19 other student applicants.

After almost two hours of candidate speeches and a question and answer period, it took SAC members only a few minutes to vote and then have their ballots counted.

SAC used the HARE proportional system to select the winners, which means that SAC members could rank as many candidates as they wished. Though this system often leads to long tabulation processes, it took council executives only moments to determine the winners.

The actual vote count was confidential.

McKean, a resident of Cabot House, is a well-known member of the PSLM who participated in the Massachusetts Hall sit-in that sparked the committee’s formation

McKean told members of SAC that his experience with Harvard’s workers and his knowledge of wage issues would make him an asset to the committee.

“I’ve worked closely with workers for three years,” said McKean, also a Crimson editor. “I’ve spent hours with dining hall workers and other employees. I’ve also spoken at length with many administrators...this committee can become a model for University decision-making.”

“I only regret that my election compromises diversity on the [Katz] committee,” McKean added, referring to SAC’s choice of two white males.

Milikowsky, a resident of Mather House, said that he had not yet taken a stance on the living wage, but that he had a “passion for social justice.”

“I remain unconvinced about either sides’ rhetoric,” Milikowsky said. “I want to know the effect of a wage floor on tuition, for instance. I want to do what’s right for workers and students.”

Milikowsky also suggested that SAC choose one PSLM member and one candidate who, like himself, did not have a “hard and fast position.”

Although SAC held a secret ballot, council members attending the meeting indicated that SAC liberals marked McKean as their top choice, while conservatives voted for Milikowsky.

Though a number of other candidates for the committee professed to be undecided on the living wage issue, SAC conservatives converged on the choice of Milikowsky after holding a brief, pre-vote conference in a corner of the room.

They apparently decided to endorse Milikowsky before SAC Chair Todd E. Plants `01 ordered the group to disband, saying there would be no caucus-forming.

Council conservative Sterling P.A. Darling `01 said he expected SAC to select committee representatives with different ideologies.

“At least there is a balanced representation of what is a dividing issue on [SAC],” Darling said.

Council President Paul A. Gusmorino `02 said he was pleased with the way the elections were run.

“SAC did a good job of getting the word out about the election,” Gusmorino said. “They selected nominees with a broad range of opinions. I don’t know Matthew, but Ben has a lot of experience with labor issues.”

The council will hold a special meeting today to confirm McKean and Milikowsky’s appointments. It will require a majority vote of the council to approve each candidate.

—Staff writer Alexander B. Ginsberg can be reached at ginsberg@fas.harvard.edu.