In negotiations, the protesters objected to the Dec. 19 deadline, but ultimately acceded to the University’s terms, said PSLM member Ari Z. Weisbard ’02-’03.

“There are lots of things that could have been better in the decision. We haven’t tried to change the date since the sit-in, any more than we’ve tried to change the committee,” said PSLM member Benjamin L. McKean ’02.

According to McKean, who is also a Crimson editor, releasing the report during break will compromise the education and discussion purpose the recommendations could serve.

“[Issuing the report] is an opportunity to stimulate dialogue,” McKean said. “It seems quite odd to me to stimulate dialogue when the majority of the campus is on break.”

The committee, chaired by Professor of Economics Lawrence F. Katz and made up of administrators, faculty members, union representatives and students, will include in its report data collected on wages and employment practices, as well as a series of non-binding recommendations to improve current labor conditions on campus.

After the report’s release, Summers will seek comment from members of the Harvard community before making a decision on the recommendations, Wrinn said.

PSLM member Madeleine S. Elfenbein ’04 said next Wednesday’s deadline is a “terrible time” for the report to come out—a time that was “deliberately chosen” by the administration.

She said PSLM members were more concerned with the committee’s membership and did not want to make the report deadline a sticking point.

Thomas, who has been involved with the living wage campaign, noted the Dec. 19 date marks the release of recommendations—not Summers’ final decision.

“I don’t find it intrinsically sinister,” he said. “Obviously there was some need for dispatch, given the pressure from those concerned with the issue.”

Familiar Figures

Although the committee has operated for the past six months under an agreement of confidentiality, much of the report’s data has already been released.

The data contained in this report will be similar to the material included in the Oct. 22 preliminary draft, which was culled primarily from computerized employment records covering the period from September 1994 to March 2001. In the final report the tables have been extended to incorporate additional figures from March to September 2001, Katz said.

The information released Oct. 22 revealed that the mean real wages paid to custodians, dining hall workers, guards and parking attendants have declined.