Press Release: The Building & Realty Institute and 32BJ SEIU Reach Tentative Agreement on New Four-Year Contract, Covering 500 Residential Buildings and 1,400 Residential Building Service Workers
New Agreement Addresses Economic Anxieties Shared by Residents and Building Workers Alike with Sustainable Wages, Preserved Employer-funded Healthcare and Pension Benefits
(ARMONK, N.Y.) After weeks of negotiations between The Building and Realty Institute (BRI) and 32BJ SEIU, the two parties tentatively agreed to a four-year agreement that will affect 1,400 residential building service workers in 500 co-ops, condos, and rental apartment buildings across the Mid-Hudson region.
The agreement, which takes the place of the previous four-year contract which expires at midnight on September 30, is pending a ratification vote by the members of 32BJ. Once ratified, the contract will extend to September 30, 2030.
With the tentative agreement in place, fears and rhetoric about a strike — potentially the first such strike in the Hudson Valley in over three decades — have subsided.
Lisa DeRosa, Chair of the Board of Trustees of the BRI and President of DeRosa Builders, said: “My family has always prided itself on not just providing much needed housing for Westchester’s families, but also providing solid, middle-class jobs at good wages and with the economic security of health insurance and retirement. Since 2019, landlords throughout the region have been on the receiving end of one body blow after another, with high interest rates and costs for insurance, heat and utilities, and building supplies that continue skyrocket, combining with some brutal and punitive policies coming out of Albany. Nevertheless, we now have an agreement for the next four years that is both rewarding for these essential workers and sustainable for our buildings and our residents.”
The new contract calls for a 15.7% wage increase over four years, and continues to provide full employer-funded health benefits covering medical, dental, optical and prescription drug coverage. The agreement extends full employer-funded pensions and access to the union’s legal services and training funds, as well as retaining the generous holiday and leave policies from past contracts.
According to BRI officials, in the absence of major reforms to health insurance, pensions, and other benefits, the key to achieving a deal was substantial reforms to the process for terminations for cause or disciplinary actions. In any number of cases, employees who had been fired for violating the contract or other egregious performance issues and who ultimately had been found by an independent arbitrator to have been fired properly and with good reason had nevertheless taken advantage of built in delays in the grievance and arbitration process to stay in the rent-free apartments provided as a condition of employment for months or even a year or more. The new agreement provides a slightly reduced timeframe for due process and stiffer financial penalties for staying in the apartment after due process has been exhausted, as well as no payout for unused vacation days if terminated for cause.
David Amster, the Chair of the BRI Labor Negotiations Committee and the president of the property management company Prime Locations, Inc. said he and the negotiating committee were focused on achieving balance throughout the negotiations.
“Our goal was to negotiate a sustainable contract that takes the economic hardships on all sides into account, and I believe we successfully struck that balance. We heard loud and clear the concerns of the men and women on the front lines in our buildings about maintaining their healthcare and pension and avoiding making any changes to the fully employer-funded benefits they rely on. But every day of the week, I’m dealing with co-op shareholders on fixed incomes struggling to afford insurance increases of 50% or more, outrageous heating oil and utility bills, and surging inflation that’s taking a bite out of everyone’s paycheck. It took time, effort, and patience, but this contract set both the buildings and the workers up for success.”
About the Building & Realty Institute of the Hudson Valley
Founded in 1946, the Building & Realty Institute of the Hudson Valley is a regional trade association representing more than 1,100 members across the residential, commercial, multifamily, development, construction and property management industries. The BRI advocates for policies that promote housing opportunities, responsible development and economic growth throughout the Hudson Valley while providing members with education, networking and industry resources.