Every day, more commercial buildings are increasing their efforts to reduce their environmental impact. From waste management to water conservation, the operations of these commercial buildings can be enhanced to make them more environmentally sustainable. At the forefront of these operations are the janitors. Janitors play a critical role in reducing factors like waste, energy use, and water consumption, and their efforts have significant impacts on the economics and environmental effects of the buildings they clean.
The Green Janitorial Education Program, originally pioneered in California, was recently piloted in Colorado through cooperative efforts between our union, the Building Skills Partnership, and the owners of the buildings our janitors clean every day. This program teachers janitors how to be more sustainable in their day to day work and highlights topics such as energy and water conservation, waste diversion and recycling, and janitor health and safety. After a 30 hour course, the janitors graduate and are given a certificate of the skills they learned.
Our pilot was a success. Janitors are excited to learn how to make a positive impact on the environment, and building owners are already seeing the benefits of having more sustainable operations. Upon graduation, they were recognized and congratulated by members of both the Colorado House of Representatives and the Senate, and we are already working with the Building Skills Partnership and more building owners to bring more janitors into the program.
If you are interested in learning more about the program, or if you would like to bring green janitors to your building, contact Luis Ponce at (720) 276-3469 or lponce@seiu105.org!
You can also view the informational brochure.
Below are some photos from the graduation of our pilot program:
