Josh Whitehead / The SWC Sun
By Josh Whitehead
Southwestern College’s faculty union, the Southwestern College Education Association (SCEA), is in arbitration with campus administration over persistent rodent issues, according to a trio of campus leaders. No timelines were given and sources said they could not disclose what is being discussed during confidential arbitration sessions.
“Everyone wants the same thing,” said a high ranking college leader. “We want safe and clean conditions for campus employees.”
A grievance filed during the Spring 2025 semester alleged unsafe working conditions related to a rodent infestation in the library building. Staff in other campus buildings said they have dealt with rodent issues for almost five years.
Campus officials have ordered various degrees of cleaning of buildings across campus by staff and outside specialists for at least a year, according to district records. Cleaning personnel targeted rodent droppings, urine and the animals themselves, according to library, theater and FTMA employees who witnessed the efforts. Some employees have acknowledged progress but also insist that much more work needs to be done.
Southwestern Community College District safety conditions are governed by California’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (CAL-OSHA), according to Article 11 of the SCEA employee handbook. Employees are instructed to inform district officials as soon as possible about possible unsafe working conditions. They are not required to work in unsafe conditions or perform tasks that risk their health, safety or well-being, according to the faculty union contract. Article 11.8 of the SCEA employee handbook specifically addresses how a rodent infestation should be handled by district officials.
“Cleaning shall be done in such a manner as to minimize the contamination of the air and, insofar as is practicable, shall be performed as such a time and in such a manner that will avoid harmful exposures to employees,” reads the handbook.
To reach arbitration a grievance must go through three levels, according to the SCEA handbook. If the initial grievance is not resolved to the employee’s satisfaction, the complainant may forward their grievance in writing to the next higher ranked administrator of their department. If a resolution is not agreed to, the grievance is sent to the president, who has 10 days to provide a decision.
If at that point a resolution still cannot be found, either party may request mediation. Representatives of both parties meet with a neutral mediator in an effort to reach a settlement. Failing that, parties go to binding arbitration, where an arbitrator will determine whether the collective bargaining agreement signed by SCEA and Southwestern College has been breached. Decisions by the arbitrator are considered a final binding order that all parties must follow.
Problems with rats and mice in the library started to become public last November. During the winter and spring months of 2025 college officials interviewed by The Sun indicated that whatever rodent problems may have existed had been successfully remedied, claims that library and FTMA employees said were not true. Rodent traps began to appear in greater numbers and students began to complain about the smell of rodent urine in the library. Several students reported seeing rats. One student said a rat run across her foot while she studied in the library.
A consensus among employees working in the FTMA area is that the problem Is being addressed and that progress continues, but rodents remain. Employees in the Performing Arts Center acknowledged efforts by the district to mitigate rodents but insist they still plague the building. Library employees have said they think their work area is cleaner now that it was during the spring semester but have been tight-lipped about the persistence of rodents.
