Janitors who clean One Post Office Square rallied at the building around 6 p.m. last night to alert building tenants of stalled negotiations that could lead to a strike if building owners and cleaning contractors refuse to compromise or comply with union demands.
Negotiation talks between Local 254 of the Service Employees International Union and cleaning contractors were halted indefinitely yesterday, yielding no agreements for individual health insurance and full-time hours for the union’s 11,000 janitors in the Boston area.
The talks “broke down” around 4 p.m. with no plans to resume negotiations, SEIU spokeswoman Sylvia Panfil said. Janitors rallied shortly thereafter at One Post Office Square to warn commercial building tenants of the impending strike.
“The janitors are prepared for the possibility of a strike any day any time now,” Panfil said. “It could be today, it could be tomorrow — they’re keeping their options open.”
Panfil said part of the union’s plan is not to announce the date and time of the strike.
“We want to have an element of surprise,” she said. “That’s part of our strategy.”
Another aspect of the strike strategy will include targeting specific buildings and companies first then slowly expanding to include all buildings.
SEIU Local 254 spokesperson Suzie Stone said the union opened negotiations with the Maintenance Contractors of New England in June to prepare for a renewal of a three-year contract with the union’s employees at the end of August.
Negotiators came to no agreement and made little progress over the past few months, according to Stone.
“We’ve been working really hard every week in negotiations with the contract and we’ve been making very little progress, even today,” Stone said.
The union voted overwhelmingly Sunday to authorize a strike if an agreement cannot be made through negotiation talks, which continued on Labor Day.
Local 254 has been fighting with the Maintenance Contractors of New England and members of the Boston commercial real estate community for full-time hours and health insurance for janitors, benefits already awarded to SEIU workers in many cities across the country, Stone said.
Stone said full-time hours and health insurance are related issues because many workers are only hired part-time and therefore are not eligible for the health benefits afforded to full-time employees.
“We’re still trying to get tenant support,” Stone said. “We’re raising awareness about the negotiations.”
The Local 254 communications office reported Equity Office Properties, Boston’s biggest landlord and owner of One Post Office Square, guarantees full-time work and health insurance benefits to its janitors in Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco and New York City. As noted on the union’s web site, cities like Pittsburgh and San Francisco, where janitors receive these benefits, have a lower cost of living than Boston.
Stone said janitors work in large commercial buildings in and around Boston, the owners of which are expected to make approximately $4.8 billion in rental income this year. Equity Office Properties alone earned $3 billion in rental income from its properties across the country last year, SEIU reported in a press release.
Panfil said she hopes returning college students, many of whom actively supported the union and its janitors in the past, will aid their fight for health insurance and full-time hours.
“The support that janitors get from the community and students will help make a difference,” Panfil said. “We hope students will get more involved in this campaign and back the janitors like they did in other fights.”
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