More Window Cleaning News

Plea for help: Chris Morris of "Reflection Window Cleaning" is calling out for donations no matter how small for his partner participating in a 10 mile midnight walk in aid of a local hospice that his step daughter Danielle goes too. The Chestnut Tree House serves when a child develops a life-limiting illness. Not just for the child but for their loved ones as well. The aim at Chestnut Tree House is to provide the care and support these families so desperately need, whether practical, physical or emotional. If you can help - any amount will do - please consider in helping a fellow window cleaner out. The target has been reached, but more would be greatly appreciated. As an incentive a free 14" & 18" Wagtail Whirlwind will be given away in a lottery for donators. Please go here to donate.
Read more from Chris here.

Protecting Those Who Are Cleaning Our Windows: How often do you look up and marvel at those people who go up the skyscrapers and clean the windows? I am fascinated to watch when I happen to be on the inside and suddenly the platform comes down and they go to work. Think about the wind and the cold up there. It makes sense that we should all also be concerned about their safety. The Minnesota legislature was looking at HF 3824. Basically, to create a task force looking at making things safer. As Workday Minnesota reported:
The taskforce will develop training, education, and licenser standards for both companies and workers while coordinating any initiatives with OSHA regulations. "Window cleaners need to have the equipment and training to do their jobs safely. In the past two years three workers have lost their lives. We must not allow one more death to occur," said Dino Crandall, a window cleaner and member of SEIU Local 26.
In the past three years, three workers have been killed in the Twin Cities. The SEIU rally about the issue is worth watching and learning from. Hopefully, by continuing to shine a light on the issue, we will see better protections for these workers. It is really quite a spectacular job to observe.

Part time business gets busy! Nice! My father, Jim Gamage Sr., has been cleaning windows for the last few years for a few ladies and gents at Highland Park in Camden. He has just recently expanded somewhat and has picked up numerous window cleaning jobs plus offering some inside houshold cleaning as well. His number is 594-2476 or 706-6114. Call him up. He'll clean your windows, skylights, vehicle or inside of your house. Ask him about his references. He has great references. All his customers are very happy. In fact they keep getting him to do other things. Dependable, reliable, honest and trustworthy. What more could you ask for? His tagline says it all. "You can SEE the difference" Give him a call anytime.

Story of the day: "Imagining LeBron James Through the Lens of an Edward Hopper Painting" by Bryan Harvey. LeBron James just spent the last six hours altering his destiny, crossing out every appointment and meeting on his calendar from now until July, making each box of the week into a transparent window, as if time were now transparent and of little consequence–only, how can the moments of our lives be of little consequence? Read more...

But running a supermarket with volunteers, however keen, is just not the same as having an army of paid workers, and Potts Dawson, who has opened two London restaurants, knows it. "Hmm," he says, as I rather ineffectually start to clean a window. "I always say that a volunteer takes about three times as long as a professional will to manage a job." I stand back from the window and survey a large area of smears.

Suicide jumper kills passer-by: A suicide resulted in another death when a woman who jumped from a tall building landed on a cleaning lady below. Josefina Venizela jumped from the window of the 12th floor of a building in northern Chile. She landed on 56-year-old Luisa Almendares, who happened to be taking out the rubbish in the patio of the building next door. The mother of four was just 40 minutes from finishing her shift. Police say both women died instantly.

A lovesick thug besotted with an older woman murdered a man who joked with her about having sex. Blair Campbell, 17, knifed window cleaner John Miller (pictured) 13 times after the dad held up a Viagra tablet and said he'd have all-night sex with Lisa Hunter, 24. The monster's face "turned bright red" after he heard the quip and he rushed home to grab a large kitchen knife, a court heard. After returning he sneaked up behind dad-of-two John, 37, and launched the frenzied attack in front of his pals. Campbell plunged the blade through John's skull. Another blow fatally severed the main blood vessel coming from John's heart. Campbell then calmly walked home and told his dad: "I've just stabbed somebody." He added: "You can expect the police coming." Yesterday killer Campbell was jailed for at least 12 years for the "wicked" crime.

Cleaning co. exec. buys in University City: Nathan J. Merrick and his wife, Catherine, bought a two-bedroom, 1.5-bath home at 7600 Delmar Blvd. in University City from Family Fleming Trust for $298,900 on May 4. The 1,671-square-foot home was built in 1926 in University City Central. It is located in the Delmar Heights subdivision. Mr. Merrick is vice president of franchise development at Fish Window Cleaning Services Inc., a St. Louis-based window cleaning company. He joined the company in May 2001 as a staff member in the operations department and has served as its Northeastern district manager. He earned a bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Missouri Baptist University. Ms. Merrick is a legal assistant at Carey and Danis LLC in Clayton. She holds a B.A. in French from Truman State University. According to BlockShopper.com, there have been 647 home sales in University City during the past 12 months, with a median sales price of $140,000.

Don Marsh to run for City Commission seat: Don Marsh, the conservative whose bid to become Gainesville's mayor came up 42 votes short this spring, signed up this week to run for an at-large City Commission seat next year. Soon after losing the mayoral contest, Marsh said he would be going after an at-large or District 2 seat in April 2011. On Friday he said he decided to run for what he considers the more difficult contest, calling the District 2 race - in which Lauren Poe would be the incumbent - "easy pickins." "I just got done with an at-large race," he said. "I darn near won." While he's never held public office, Marsh, 51, a registered Republican who runs a window-cleaning business, will be running his third political campaign.
In 2002, he ran for an Alachua County Commission seat, getting 33.67 percent of the vote in a loss to Cynthia Chestnut, a Democrat. In March, he finished second in the mayoral race to city Commissioner Craig Lowe, and a month later, in the runoff election, he lost by a handful of votes. For now, Marsh is the only candidate signed up to contend for the at-large seat now held by Thomas Hawkins, a registered Democrat. On Friday, Hawkins said that he intends to run for re-election. But, Hawkins added, "I'm not ready to start campaigning yet." Hawkins said Marsh's decision to enter the race might force him to sign up early so he can start fundraising. Marsh said fundraising was a big reason he signed up so early, some nine months before the election.
When he ran for mayor, Marsh only had 90 days to put together his campaign, he said, so now he will have time to get organized. While he said running against Poe might be a less daunting task, he thinks he can take down Hawkins. This year he said there were plenty of people who told him he had no chance to win. "I didn't buy any of it," Marsh said. "I still don't buy it."

Window Cleaning Deaths in the Twin Cities

High-rise fatalities prompt stricter safety standards: Travis Schneider stood on a window-cleaning platform along the Target Plaza North high rise in downtown Minneapolis. Working 14 stories up, Schneider used a rope-and-pulley system to lower himself down to the next set of windows. When the platform got stuck on the system's sliding tracks, Schneider used his body weight to force it along, trusting the platform's railing to hold his weight as he pushed.The railing snapped. Schneider fell from the deck, dropping four feet before his safety harness caught him. As Schneider dangled off the platform, his shaken co-worker helped pull his 250-pound body back to safety. Schneider wasn't injured in the tumble.

Schneider's experience isn't uncommon for the workers who clean the tallest buildings in the Twin Cities. The window cleaners say they are often forced to risk their lives with outdated ropes and unsafe anchor points. Complaining about working conditions is a sure way to get sent home without pay, they say. The safety concerns became a focal point in the union negotiations this month for a new contract for 60 employees at two of the top companies in town. SEIU Local 26 employees at Marsden Final Touch and Columbia Building Services had been without a new contract since February 1 and were locked out of their jobs for eight days after raising safety concerns with their managers. They say it's a matter of life and death: In the past two and a half years, three local window cleaners have fallen to their deaths.

Derek Eggert has been a window cleaner for 16 years, most recently for Columbia. When he asked his managers for information on the age of their ropes, he says they told him he was being ridiculous. The companies are required to replace ropes three years after they were manufactured, but Eggert says he has had to use ropes past their expiration date. "I have two little girls, and I want to be able to tell them in the morning that I am going to be home at the end of the day," he says. "I want to have that extra safety and assurance that I know I am not lying to them. I don't want to be the next one to go." Eggert points to the death of Columbia employee Fidel Danilo Sanchez-Flores in 2007. He was clearing snow from the IDS Tower's Crystal Court when he fell four stories and broke through the building's glass roof. OSHA fined Columbia $25,750 for violations connected to that accident, but the company settled for $15,000. "It was devastating," Eggert says. "We are a close-knit group and saw him as a father figure."



The two companies said they didn't want to negotiate contracts through the media, but released a joint statement regarding the safety questions: "Our companies have an excellent safety record. We have always taken safety issues seriously, and, of course, comply with all state and federal OSHA regulations. Only last Thursday—one month into bargaining—did the union raise any concerns about employee safety." Unions often focus on one major issue, such as safety, to bring attention to their fight against the companies, says Barb Kucera, of the University of Minnesota's Labor Education Service. But that doesn't mean the safety concerns are simply a bargaining tactic. "Sometimes these things build up over time and it takes a contract negotiation to bring those issues forward," Kucera says. "The bargaining table is best way to solve problems with the employer."

The Twin Cities have been struck disproportionately by window-washing accidents. Nationally, there are only three to four window-cleaning deaths a year in a field that employs up to 8,000 people. So three deaths in two and a half years locally may be cause for concern, says Stefan Bright, International Window Cleaning Association safety director. "When the economy goes south, employers look to cut costs, and this is an industry that shouldn't, because safety will be compromised somewhere." The union's persistence paid off. On April 8, the companies and union members agreed on a new five-year contract that increases safety standards above OSHA requirements.

But non-union window washers won't get the same safety benefits just yet. Greg Nammacher, SEIU Local 26 representative, says the employees are helping Rep. Jim Davnie, DFL -Minneapolis, craft a bill that would extend stricter safety standards to all window washers.
"These are some real significant steps forward, but union companies can't change the industry," he says. "The end of the lock-out has underscored the importance of focusing on state legislation to protect all industry employees."

Glenn Roehsner says he faces unsafe working conditions every day but feels pressured to get the job done or leave the work site. It took the contract negotiation to give him the strength to speak up. "We pressure ourselves to work in these conditions, but it's just become too unsafe," he says. "This job doesn't have to be dangerous."

Marchers Remember Fallen Window Cleaners

MINNEAPOLIS - With flowers and prayers, window cleaners and supporters remembered a co-worker and father who died doing his job in downtown Minneapolis. Member of Service Employees International Union Local 26 held a memorial march Friday to commemorate the life of Fidel Sanchez-Flores, killed when he fell while working at the IDS Center in downtown Minneapolis in 2007. He was one of three window cleaners to die on the job in the past three years. The march occurred as some 60 window cleaners remain locked out of their jobs by cleaning companies in the Twin Cities. Local 26, which is in contract talks with the contractors, said the workers were locked out because they have been raising safety concerns.

The marchers stopped in front of two buildings they said are very dangerous to clean – the Oracle building at 9th St. and 2nd Ave., and the U.S. Bancorp building on Nicollet Mall. The workers said many buildings fail to have adequate places for workers to tie on safety equipment.
After a moment of silence in front of the IDS, Vielka Sanchez – Fidel Sanchez-Flores’ daughter – told marchers that their cause is just. “Where my dad’s at right now – he’s so thankful you guys are doing this,” she said. “He’s 100 percent behind you.” Window cleaners carried purple and yellow flowers that they laid in front of a large portrait of Sanchez-Flores. Rain began to fall as some wiped away tears. James Miller, a window cleaner for 12 years, said he and his co-workers want to prevent further injuries and deaths on the job. While their union supports them in their effort to make their work safer, window cleaners without representation have no such support, he said. Many get hired and start cleaning high-rise buildings without any training, Miller said. Not enough laws are in place to protect these workers, he said. “You have to have a license to cut hair, but not to hang off a building,” Miller noted.

Three window cleaners arrested as protest highlights safety concerns: As an employer lockout of window cleaners entered a second week, three of the locked-out workers risked arrest Monday in a protest to call attention to safety concerns. Shrill whistles disturbed lunchtime in the food court at Gavidae Common in downtown Minneapolis as members and supporters of Service Employees International Union Local 26 took dramatic action to highlight the window cleaners’ calls for improved workplace safety. The group of about 25 people blew whistles and chanted, “How many deaths does it take for window cleaners to be safe?” They unfurled two banners, one reading “window cleaner safety now” and the other memorializing Fidel Sanchez-Flores, a window cleaner who fell to his death two years ago.

Three window cleaners put on their work harnesses and sat down in an act of civil disobedience to risk arrest. The group’s chanting and whistles continued for several minutes while Dino Crandall, Travis Schneider, and James Miller waited for security guards and police to take action. Crandall and Miller are window cleaners working for Building Maintenance / Final Touch while Schneider is a window cleaner who works for Columbia. Marsden and Columbia locked out workers March 29 after workers raised safety concerns during contract negotiations. “It’s a dangerous job,” Crandall said in an interview last week. “When we finally asked for the inspection reports, they said ‘go home if you don’t want to work.’” “All right gentlemen, it’s over,” a security guard told Crandall, Schneider, and Miller as Minneapolis police moved to arrest the three and handcuff them. Outside, about 25 supporters chanted as Crandall, Schneider and Miller were put inside a paddy wagon.

Glenn Roehsner, Minneapolis, who has worked 14 years as a window cleaner for Marsden Building Maintenance / Final Touch, addressed the media gathered at the site: “We’ve had three people die in the past two years… We are being stressed to work unsafe.” Roehsner said Marsden and Columbia locked out workers when the workers raised safety concerns and that the companies have not agreed to further negotiations. As the paddy wagon drove away, the crowd chanted: “What to we want? Safety! When do we want it? Now!” One of the locked-out window cleaners participating in the event said he felt good about the day’s action. Sidronio Montoya, Minneapolis, who has worked for Marsden for about three years, said: “We want to work. We want to be safe.”

Supporters cheered the three window cleaners for taking a stand as they are led from the building to a police wagon. Also see here & here.