By: Lucaiah Smith-Miodownik, News Writer
Content warning: mention of death.
For the last 15 years, SFU has outsourced its janitorial services through BEST Service Pros, meaning cleaning staff are not directly employed by the university.
This decision to outsource labour has been met with notable and continued pushback. The SFU coalition, Contract Worker Justice (CWJ), organized a rally in late 2024 to advocate for in-house contracting of janitorial and food service work. SFU food service workers, employed by Compass Group Canada, led bargaining efforts in 2025 for livable wages by their employer. These organized protests call for the university to in-source and directly employ these staff.
Advocacy for this shift was amplified in July 2025, when Kulbir Kaila died during a cleaning shift at SFU. Coworkers later came forward and described the conditions under which she and many others worked: “up to 40,000 steps each shift,” “a lack of job security,” and “a culture of fear.” BEST previously denied these allegations. With SFU’s BEST contract set to expire in April 2027, organizations like Contract Worker Justice (CWJ) are calling upon the university to transition to in-house employment.
SFU’s recent press release suggests a different path. On July 10, the university announced that it “is issuing a Request for Proposals [ . . . ] for our next janitorial services contract.” A Request for Proposals is a competitive submission process, wherein potential vendors submit their interest and apply to fill a role outlined by a contracting business. The Peak corresponded with SFU and CUPE 3338, the union that represents the janitorial staff, for more information on the decision.
“Bringing these services in-house would allow SFU to take greater responsibility for staffing levels, working conditions, accountability and the respectful treatment of the workers who clean its campus.”
— CUPE 3338
“We are disappointed that SFU is moving forward with another contracting process for cleaning services rather than seriously considering bringing this essential work back in-house,” the union noted. “Bringing these services in-house would allow SFU to take greater responsibility for staffing levels, working conditions, accountability and the respectful treatment of the workers who clean its campus.”
In a July 13 Instagram post, CWJ echoed these sentiments, adding that “the university continues to refuse to do the right thing and take these workers into direct employment — even after documented workplace safety cases, managerial bullying, and harassment, and the horrific tragedy of Kulbir Kaila’s death on the job.”
CWJ also expressed alarm over the proposed timeline for new contract proposals. “The deadline for companies to declare their intent to bid is July 17 — an exceptionally tight timeline — and interested bidders must also attend three mandatory site visits this summer,” the organization wrote. “Our reading is that these requirements give the current contractor, BEST, a significant inside track in the bidding process.”
The group noted additional concerns regarding how “the posting makes no mention of SFU’s living wage commitment,” a certification that SFU has been seeking since 2022. CWJ also shared that the Request for Proposals states that “the successful proponent shall perform quality work according to the specified performance level of service and to the ‘best practice’ of the janitorial industry,” though they characterized the statement as “a remarkably low bar.”
The university commented in a statement to The Peak, “Public institutions in BC are required to run competitive procurement processes [like Request for Proposals] once contracts reach certain dollar thresholds or time limits to ensure fairness, transparency, and value for public funds.” Additionally, “regularly re-competing contracts also ensures the institution continues to receive best value, up-to-date services, and innovative solutions, while meeting provincial trade agreement and procurement policy requirements.”
The school “completed a review of the feasibility of bringing janitorial services in-house in 2021/22 and it was determined that an insourced model is not financially viable,” added SFU.
The Peak contacted CWJ but did not hear back by the publication’s deadline.
