EXCLUSIVE: Chief Negotiators of Union Contract Talks Explain What to Expect

The relationship between the 32BJ Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and the RAB has historically proven to be productive, and both sides expect to reach a mutually beneficial agreement. "In every contract cycle, with very few exceptions over 75 years, we have come to an agreement," says 32BJ SEIU union president Héctor Figueroa. "Our goal is not to have a strike or disrupt the work our members do."

A new deal could mean

increased wages and

benefits, resulting in a

bump in operating costs. 

The more likely effect that the negotiations will have is on building budgets — and, in particular, on the price of labor. A new deal could mean increased wages and benefits for service employees, resulting in a bump in operating costs. When the last contract expired, in 2010, the union won a pay increase of nearly 10 percent over four years for the 30,000 doormen, porters, janitors and supers it represents in 3,300 apartment buildings throughout the city. It did not make any significant concessions on benefits.

"In years when the contract expires, we build projections into each building's budget for increases in salaries and benefits," says Dan Wurtzel, president of FirstService Residential, a property management firm. "These are based on prior agreements and where things have been trending. Over the course of time, you get an idea what sort of increases are likely and what they're going to cost each building. For the most part, we're able to anticipate, within a certain range, what it's going to cost."

Meet The Negotiators

Howard Rothschild is the president of the RAB, which represents property owners and operators. While he is optimistic about an agreement between the two sides, he says property owners have taken care of their workers, particularly through a difficult economy, since the last contract in 2010.

"Unlike in other industries, there were no industry layoffs or wage freezes," says Rothschild. "Historically, our wage and benefit packages have outpaced inflation… and we want to continue to provide fair and equitable wage benefits."

Rothschild will be negotiating with Figueroa, who reports to a 40- to 50-member negotiation committee. Figueroa won election as president of the 32BJ SEIU in 2012, capping a long career in labor negotiations. "Everything is going up in this city," he says. "The subway [fare] is going up. Milk is going up. We want to see wages that rise with inflation."

The two men have known each other for many years, and Rothschild says they share a good relationship. "I've found him to be a serious and responsible union leader," he observes, "and I look forward to working with him in this negotiation."

Meetings will take place roughly once a week until the deadline becomes threateningly close, when round-the-clock negotiation sessions may be necessary. Because the two lead negotiators know each other quite well, neither expects any big surprises.

Plan Ahead

Nonetheless, most managers agree it's unwise to get lulled into a false sense of security simply because there hasn't been a strike in more than two decades. They say it's wise to plan well in advance and operate under the assumption that there will be a strike.

Note that in buildings with more than six workers, the contract for the super or the resident manager is staggered to expire one month later, so he or she will be on the job in the event of a strike. The issue, though, that all buildings will face regardless of whether you have a super or resident manager is who will take out the garbage.

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