Published: June 14, 2010

Although contract negotiations between workers' union 32BJ and Co-op City management RiverBay Corp. resumed on Friday after a weeklong strike, the union has announced that little if any progress has been made toward reaching a new agreement.

As a result, both parties have agreed to bring in an independent mediator to help the two sides overcome their differences.

32BJ and Co-op City management have asked for assistance from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, an independent government agency. Federal Mediation is expected to join labor and management representatives at their next negotiating session scheduled for Tuesday.

The workers at the massive Bronx housing complex are seeking a new contract that maintains their health care coverage and provides wage increases. RiverBay has stated that the workers' current health plan is simply too expensive and needs to be changed in order to offer wage increases.

With more than 55,000 residents living in 15,400 units across 35 high-rise buildings and seven clusters of townhouses, Co-op City is the largest housing development in the country and the largest cooperative housing development in the world.