Published: April 22, 2010

Well into the eleventh hour, the city avoided a doorman strike as union 32BJ and the Realty Advisory Board agreed on a new contract.

The new deal gives the union’s 30,000 members a 10 percent raise over the next four years, and does not diminish sick days, vacations and overtime. It also increases employer contributions towards health benefits and pensions by nearly 20 percent.

“The contract is an important victory for keeping New York a place where working people can call home,” said 32BJ’s President Mike Fishman. “We stood together and fought hard to maintain health care and get wage increases that will help thousands of hard working men and women make ends meet in one of the most expensive cities in the world.”

The deal ended a month-long stand off between the union and RAB, with a constant negotiations held throughout the process.

The deal saves $70 million a year in health care expenses, according to RAB President Howard Rothschild.

“It’s a victory for building owners, employees and residents,” he said in a statement. “Given these difficult economic times, it is an agreement we can all be proud of.”

The union had convened its Queens members three weeks ago, voting to strike should the midnight deadline pass without a new contract.

“Nobody wanted to strike, obviously,” said Sean Lunney, an Astoria native and 32BJ member working as a concierge on the Upper West Side. “Being the fact that they wanted to take away all our benefits and they were unable to succeed, we feel pretty good about it.”

Lunney said residents spent the better part of the morning congratulating their building’s workers on their new contract.

But the last-minute agreement might have cost some morning-shifters a good night’s sleep.

“I stayed up late and followed the news headlines and called in to work to see if they heard anything,” Lunney said. “A strike would’ve meant going without pay for a while. A lot of these guys live paycheck to paycheck, so I’m glad.”