"I don't think he should have gotten fired," said one employee. "He opens people's eyes."

"I know he does a good job [and] I support him," said another. "He's a very good shop steward. He always said, 'If you have any problems, you come [to me] and we'll go downstairs [to talk with the managers]."

"They don't like him because he's a fighter," added another.

Several workers echoed Hicks' claims of discrimination at the dining hall.

"I've been discriminated against," said one. "I was told I was too short for serving in the line, after I'd been serving on line for three years."

"It's a tough place to work, especially if you're a Black or a minority," said another, adding that the administration often seeks reprisals against vocal labor union stewards. "That organization is pretty rugged there...You've got to be tough to work there."

"Management all has their little favorites," said one of the employees.

The workers interviewed were divided on Hicks' claims that employees segregate themselves by race. Hicks asserted that a large majority of Portuguese employees avoid contact with a minority of Black, white and Puerto Rican workers.

Workers interviewed did back Hicks' assertions of low staff morale, and they corroborated his allegations that workers are forced to work when they are sick.

"Morale sucks," said one. "A lot of people are so intimidated, they come in [even when they are sick]."

"I am literally scared," said another.

Berry yesterday denied that employees must work when they are sick, though he said the dining services administration is seeking to cut down on abuses of sick leave.

"They are not being called in on their sick days...I'd like to have someone show me one instance," Berry said in an interview. "We are toughening up on people with excessive absenteeism...When there's a pattern established, then we warn them."

Several workers at the Freshman Union disputed Berry's claims. "They get suspicious whenever you call [in sick]," said one.

The workers also said Berry is not as accessible as he claims to be.