32BJ union authorized possible strike as contract negotiations get underway

The 32BJ Service Employees International Union of janitors in the Hudson Valley and Fairfield County voted Dec. 5 to authorize a potential strike if an agreement can”™t be reached for an expiring contract.

About 1,000 commercial building cleaners met at the Westchester County Center on Saturday to vote on the strike option, which is a routine vote during contract negotiations.

Talks between the union and employers, known collectively as the Hudson Valley/Fairfield County Contractors Association, began Nov. 18.

The current contract went into effect in 2012 and is set to expire Dec. 31. It affects about 3,500 union members who work in nearly 300 buildings in Westchester, Putnam, Dutchess, Rockland, Orange and Sullivan counties in New York and Fairfield County in Connecticut.

Gladys Jimenez, a bargaining committee member for 32BJ SEIU who has been with the union for 30 years, said, “We”™re looking for a better contract and a fair raise.”

Specifically, union members are calling for increases to minimum incrementally-increased salaries ”“ which, as part of the last contract, started at $12.85 per hour in July 2012 and increased to $14.10 per hour in October, though some are contracted to make more than that ”“ as well as increasing the number of full-time worker hires and keeping health insurance benefits for full-time employees.

The Contractors Association, which is made up of numerous contractors including ABM Industries Inc. and United Services of America Inc., said in a prepared statement that it is committed to reaching a mutually beneficial agreement for all involved parties.

“We recognize that, in these economic times, customers need to manage costs very carefully,” the statement said. “We will continue to work hard at the bargaining table, and we”™re confident that we will achieve a successful contract settlement.”

The next bargaining meeting is scheduled for Dec. 10.