Một trường cao đẳng tại Đại học Cambridge đang thuê người dọn dẹp mới sau khi hình ảnh phòng ngủ và nhà bếp lộn xộn của sinh viên được phát tán mà không có sự đồng ý.
Vụ việc xảy ra vào thứ Tư tuần trước, ngày 17 tháng Tư, Varsity đưa tin, khi những người dọn dẹp trường đại học gửi một email hàng loạt có chứa những bức ảnh rõ ràng là đáng nguyền rủa.
Nó chỉ trích các sinh viên về mức độ sạch sẽ của họ và mô tả những bức ảnh đính kèm là “một minh họa về những gì dịch vụ dọn phòng KHÔNG muốn thấy trong các chuyến thăm hàng tuần của họ.”
Trong khi email hiện đã bị xóa khỏi máy chủ của trường đại học, các sinh viên bị ảnh hưởng bởi hành động của những người dọn dẹp đã lên tiếng.
Một trong những sinh viên gọi đó là “cuộc xâm phạm quyền riêng tư lớn”.
Họ nói rằng điều đó “vô cùng xấu hổ” vì “mọi người đều biết đó là nhà bếp của tôi, vì vậy tôi đã gần đủ tên và xấu hổ với toàn bộ trường đại học.”
Điều này xảy ra trong bối cảnh báo cáo của Varsity rằng nhiều học sinh cũng đã bị quấy rầy bởi việc dọn phòng trực tiếp, với các công nhân được cho là đánh thức học sinh dậy vào sáng sớm và “hét vào mặt chúng tôi để cất đĩa đi.”
In one instance, when a student allegedly tried to get help with a cleaning issue, namely, an infestation of slugs, cleaners advised them to “just open a window.”
The college’s junior common room president, Aaron Lardi, described the cleaners’ actions as “unacceptable” and promised that action would be taken to “ensure that this does not happen again.”
Now, The Independent can reveal that the college is hiring for multiple housekeeping positions in the wake of the scandal.
As revealed on Indeed, the affected college, Fitzwilliam College, posted an ad for a “Casual Housekeeper” two days ago and only yesterday (24 April) added a second job ad for a “Housekeeping Supervisor”.
In the ad for the £25,100-a-year supervisor position, the college stresses that they want a candidate who is “committed to providing a professional and friendly service to our students, staff and commercial guests.”
The college is also advertising for housekeeping staff on its own website, specifying that they are seeking multiple candidates for a “rolling recruitment campaign”.
Meanwhile, on the Indeed listing, Fitzwilliam College specifies that it seeks cleaners – paid £12 an hour – for the summer months only.
Fitzwilliam College declined to comment further on the matter when asked by The Independent what steps they had taken to ensure further breaches of student privacy do not take place.
Citing their statement provided to Varsity, a spokesperson said: “On Wednesday, an email was sent by a member of staff to all students setting out cleaning expectations for those living in College accommodation. As part of this email, photos of communal areas were attached, alongside a photo of an unidentified student bedroom.
“The inclusion of the image of a student room was unacceptable and the College has issued an apology to the student and recalled the email. Steps have been taken with immediate effect to ensure that this does not happen again.
“All students living in College accommodation deserve access to clean and tidy shared facilities, and the Housekeeping team regularly access shared spaces to clean them.
“Historically, when spaces were so untidy that cleaning could not be carried out, Housekeepers used to knock on students’ doors, to offer them the opportunity to move items, so that they did not miss out on the weekly clean. This was always after 8am, usually later, and was meant to be of benefit to the students.
“In response to recent feedback from the JCR, this practice has stopped, and instead students receive emails to say the kitchen needs tidying for the following week.”
News of the scandal comes after the university’s cleaners hit the headlines earlier this year for upsetting students.
They were accused of deliberately singling out Chinese students after displaying signs asking students to keep the bathrooms clean in Mandarin only.
As reported by The Tab, the signs were erected after toilets in Homerton College were left in an unacceptable way following a conference group meeting.
Lord Simon Woolley, the college’s principal, subsequently made an “unreserved apology” to all students and “in particular students of Chinese descent” when the apparent act of discrimination was made public.