Sodexo has done the job to create clean and safe Chicago public schools

A recent op-ed from SEIU Local 73 President Dian Palmer contains gross inaccuracies we seek to clarify here but does arrive at a key point we can all agree on: Chicago’s public schools deserve clean and safe classrooms.

Sodexo takes pride in the job we and our local MBE/WBE business partners have done for the past eight years for the schools we supported in the Chicago Public Schools. It is troubling that Ms. Palmer — and others — continue to conflate Sodexo’s well-documented positive work at CPS with another company’s job performance. We are not that company; and while initial reports included photographs of unsanitary conditions, they are not from, nor do they reflect the conditions of, the schools that we are responsible to care for. It is not Sodexo, and to state otherwise is a disservice to the 1,200 Sodexo employees who have worked diligently for CPS for nearly a decade.

The schools under Sodexo supervision are in significantly better condition than when we arrived, and they provide the students of CPS an improved environment to learn and succeed. We have many testimonials from principals and others attesting to our work.

We are concerned over the lack of transparency regarding recent contracts that have been awarded by CPS and have shared those concerns with leadership. Similarly, the transition taking place among private contractors has been rushed, just as opening day for schools approaches. We all want a safe environment for students, teachers and staff and we will continue our work to ensure that.

We know that despite our differences, Ms. Palmer shares our commitment to that standard.

Steve Dunmore, CEO, Sodexo Schools