Some student employees who quit received a letter from Meredith that was also sent to the dean of students, dean of faculty, chief of Campus Police and head of the physical plant.
Most students who work in Mead are guards. According to Meredith, the guards work three- or four-hour shifts during which they are expected to remain standing and alert. "Their main responsibility is to be certain that there is no injury to the artwork," she said. The job of the guards entails "walking through galleries and anticipating visitors' behavior," she added. The guards are expected to watch for visitors touching the artwork, using a pen (pencils are the only permitted writing tool) and being sure that nothing, such as a stroller, crashes into the walls or artwork.
"It is not your typical place to work on campus," said Meredith. "It requires a great deal of responsibility."
Many students who have worked at Mead feel that they have been treated unfairly. "I worked for several weeks as a student guard ... I was forced to stand for hours at a time with nothing to do but pace the empty galleries, and be reminded every time that I so much as exchanged a word with a co-worker, that I was not allowed to 'chat,'" said a former student guard who asked not to be named.
"A social component really is not appropriate," said Meredith.
According to Meredith, students have been fired for "not interacting appropriately with visitors that have harmed the artwork or building," and arriving late or leaving early. "Promptness and reliability are essential … not coming to a shift or not giving adequate notice is inappropriate," she said, adding that if there are too few guards, the museum cannot open. "That really is a hardship on the community if the museum is unexpectedly closed."
"I think it is probably one of the worst jobs on campus … I would say, 'Avoid it at all costs,'" said Travis J. Bristol '03, who has worked one day every week in the museum for one month. "The two people I work with got fired already," he added. "I have already received two warnings. The third one I receive I will be fired."
Some workers feel that their Mead jobs demand more than should be expected of a student worker. "I have had many jobs before, and I have always been a very hard worker, and I have lifeguarded for many years and never had any problems," said another anonymous student who decided to quit. "The first day I worked there I was so bored, I almost died. The second week, because I was so cold in there the first week, I wore my jacket in there and then had taken it off just before it was time to leave. I had left my jacket on the bench," she said. "[Administrative Assistant] Donna Abelli yelled at me for having my jacket on the bench and insisted that I immediately take it to the coat room," she added, emphasizing that there were only five minutes before the museum closed and that the museum was empty at the time. "I then got an official warning in my mailbox the next day for having my jacket in there and also for excessive talking with the other guard."
"I got a warning because I had a book in there," said Bristol. "That is just a tad ridiculous, not just a tad, it is preposterous," he said about the large number of offenses that result in official warnings.
"This is entirely a public position; we do not permit this to be a study hall, we cannot," said Meredith. She also said that the position, if done well, demands the full attention of guards who must watch visitors carefully and interact with them.
Students who have quit their positions at the museum have expressed concerns that they will be blacklisted from other campus jobs as a result.
"After realizing that every shift ended in back pain from standing for so long, I decided to quit. I sent an email to the director as well as the guard sub list informing everyone of my intent and requesting a permanent sub for my shift, which is the usual procedure at my other campus job," said a former guard. This student received the letter from Meredith a few days later (see "Text of a letter sent to a former employee.")
Three other students report receiving similar letters. "When I quit, they were very rude when I tried to contact them to make sure that I got paid. Then, I got this very official ridiculous letter in my mailbox informing me that they had notified all of these important people on campus ... about how I had so unprofessionally left my post," one former guard said.
"I did feel that they took themselves way too seriously when they sent a nasty letter saying my quitting was unconscionable and that they sent a copy to the dean of students, faculty and physical plant," said another.
"Museum policy states that I would be blacklisted from working for the museum, but nowhere was I told that I would be effectively blacklisted all over campus [when I quit] … The museum has thus abused its knowledge and hopes to effectively make it almost impossible [for me] to earn the money I need, as a work study student, anywhere on campus. I am concerned that this letter will have more serious repercussions," said a student who received the letter.
Meredith said that she did not believe the letter had any blacklisting effect. "That is simply their perception … I do not think anyone checks against it." She said that students' claims of blacklisting are "a little paranoid."
"I shared a copy with the dean of faculty because she is my supervisor," she said, adding, "We work closely with Campus Police." Because the Campus Police help train student guards and the position is a security position, Meredith sent a copy of the letter to the chief of Campus Police. According to Meredith, physical plant department oversees Campus Police, which is why the letter was also sent to the director of the physical plant. Finally, she said that she thinks of the dean of students as principle overseer of students, including student workers.
Dean of Students Ben Lieber said, "It is the first time I have seen this kind of letter."
"Two students came in to see me last week … I told them there would not be any long term consequences … They should not feel blacklisted."
Lieber emphasized that the letter did not have any lasting effect, saying that when he received it he "basically set it aside and threw it away." He also noted that many departments who rely on student workers become frustrated when students leave their posts at the end of the year.
"The mere fact that the museum cannot hold onto its employees seems to indicate a much more serious underlying problem in direction. Furthermore, by alienating so many of its employees so quickly, the museum will be hard put to find students to replace them, especially since even the students who currently work for them are less than thrilled with their positions," said a former guard.
"It is absolutely ridiculous that they expect students to just sit there for four-hour shifts and really do absolutely nothing for six dollars an hour," said another.
"We seem to have all of our shifts covered," said Meredith. She added that, though the turnover rate is high, she did not believe that it was extraordinary in comparison with other departments that hire student workers. "Usually we give preference to Amherst students," she said citing that she believes students gain from the experience. "We do feel that it is part of their education at Amherst College."