Ascención Blanco

Shortly after getting a job with cleaning contractor ABM at America Tower in 2005, Houston janitor Ascención “Conchita” Blanco met a representative of the Service Employees International Union.

Conchita had worked as a maid in private homes until then. “But then I wanted to get out into the world and get to know people,” she says. “The meeting was beautiful. It was at a church.”

Today Conchita is one of SEIU Local 1’s top leaders. It seems she knows just about every commercial office janitor in Houston. “I like to help people. I like to visit the buildings where my coworkers work at night and solve problems. I like to be visible so that the cleaning companies know that I exist.”

Conchita had never done anything like this before. “I’ve really improved myself as a person,” she says.

If being a good person means taking good care of yourself and helping those around you, Conchita is one of the best there is. By helping other workers solve problems on the job, she has directly brought dignity and respect to hundreds. As a member of a committee of janitors that negotiated the Houston janitors’ first union contract in 2006, Conchita helped build the Houston Service Workers Clinic, which began operation in February, 2009.

More than 600 janitors—including Conchita—have used the clinic. “For me the clinic is perfect,” she says. “Before, I didn’t have well-woman exams. I didn’t have cholesterol tests. When I’m sick, I go to the clinic. With the tests, I have peace of mind because I know that I’m still healthy. They gave me a shot to treat my allergies and I’m not sneezing anymore. It’s great.”

Houston has benefitted from the creation of the clinic too. By offering access to a personal doctor who delivers primary and preventive care, the clinic has reduced the number and expense of emergency room and outpatient visits—keeping medical costs lower for everybody.

With the contract she negotiated in 2006 expiring on November 20, Conchita knows there’s still more to do. At a time when one in four Houstonians have trouble buying groceries to feed their families, the janitors—who are paid just $7.75 an hour—will be proposing wage increases at the bargaining table.

Winning the good jobs that Houston’s economy needs will not be easy. But Conchita—pounding her fist on the table when talking about the injustice faced by Houston’s working families—is ready to fight.  “As long as God grants me the license to keep helping, here I am,” she says.