Published: December 28, 2007
NEWARK -- Starting next week, waste baskets could overflow and rugs remain soiled in New Jersey office buildings as thousands of unionized janitors are threatening to go on strike.
Seven thousand office cleaners represented by a New Jersey local of the Service Employees International Union have voted to strike if bargainers cannot agree on a new contract, which expires midnight on New Year's Eve. The union, Local 32BJ, seeks wage increases, broader health benefits, a pension plan and additional full-time jobs.
Currently, one-third of the unionized janitors work full-time, according to Kevin Brown, the lead negotiator for Local 32BJ. Employers in other cities and counties, including New York, Philadelphia and most of the West Coast, now by-and-large hire for full-time shifts, he said.
Workers say that part-time jobs force them to piece together several cleaning jobs. Typically, custodians empty trash bins, clean toilets and dust during the nights and weekends.
"I'm depressed because I don't have time to be with my family," said Jose Almonacid, a 53-year-old office cleaner from Passaic, who works 16 hours a day between daytime shifts on an assembly line and office cleaning at night. "It's very tiring."
One out of seven union members lives in Paterson and Passaic, according to Brown, the Local 32BJ director. The union represents approximately 75 percent of commercial officer cleaners, along with some who work in government offices, he said.
Along the east coast, local unions representing office cleaners are in the midst of contract negotiations. In New Jersey, talks between the union and a consortium of 50 private cleaning companies began in October. The parties have not reached an agreement after six bargaining sessions, Brown said. The 14-member union bargaining team reported limited progress on Thursday.
"We are preparing for a strike," said Patricia Cabrera, a Local 32BJ leader, in Spanish during a union rally in Newark on Thursday. "We want to get the message to the buildings that we are not afraid."
Several representatives for the cleaning companies declined to comment when approached on Thursday at the Newark Hilton Hotel, where the negotiations are taking place.
The cleaners work in 450 office buildings across the state, including three in Clifton: Linens n' Things, ITT Defense and Rexall. In Wayne, union cleaners work at the Toys "R" Us headquarters and Berlex Labs.
Management companies that hire unionized cleaners often represent company headquarters and other large buildings. Many other offices employ non-unionized workers, who tend to earn minimum wage.
During a lunchtime break from negotiations on Thursday, more than 100 union members banged drums and waved signs as they marched through the streets of downtown Newark. Workers, most of them Hispanic, chanted "what do want, a contract" and "when do we want it, now" in Spanish.
"We need better benefits," said Shija Feratovic, a 45-year-old office cleaner from Clifton, who said she empties 520 waste baskets a day at the Goldman Sachs office tower in Jersey City. "We need better wages."
Currently, union cleaners make between $9.75 to $12.50 an hour, according to their contract. Brown would not specify how much of an increase the union seeks.
Congressman Bill Pascrell Jr., D-Paterson, said he supports the union's efforts. "The cleaning contractors have a social responsibility to provide livable wages and full time employment," said Pascrell in a written statement.
