Offner says the campaign is "doing really well" in attracting the support of community members.

She says the group has collected over 1,000 student signatures on petitions, as well as the support of about 50 Faculty members and several Harvard unions.

"It seems like everyone on campus knows who we are and what our reasoning is," Offner says.

Bartley says he feels the group can involve even more community members with increased outreach.

"People need to look around and notice dining hall workers, notice security guards--people who are providing essential services," he says.

The System at Work

The one concession that the Living Wage Campaign has won from the administration is the establishment of a Faculty task force to examine Harvard's current employment practices.

The task force, composed of seven Faculty members, met for the second time last Thursday.

Representatives of the Living Wage Campaign, including Bartley, attended the meeting, which he says went surprisingly well.

"From my point of view, the committee is off to a productive and meaningful start," Bartley says. "I was impressed by their openmindedness and willingness to listen."

The committee is chaired by D. Quinn Mills, Weatherhead professor of business administration, and includes professors of economics, health care policy and law, in addition to administrators such as Sally H. Zeckhauser, vice president for administration, and Kim A. Roberts '70, director of labor and employee relations.

Bartley says the task force seems to be looking at the issue from a non-biased standpoint.

"Most people said they had never thought about the issue before. They're starting with a clean slate," he says. "They seem interested and open to take a good look at low-wage labor on campus."

Mills says it is the committee's responsibility to fairly listen to the campaign's concerns.

"Our job is to study and make recommendations," he said. "I don't have any doubt they will be taken seriously."