Doormen Strike
More than 30,000 workers supporting 3,000+ NYC luxury buildings are set to strike at the expiration of their collective bargaining agreement. Yesterday their union, 32BJ-SEIU, authorized that strike which would start on April 21st. This would be the first work stoppage since 1991, which lasted 12 days. I've been assured by my landlord (naturally) that a strike would be extremely unlikely.
I'm sure many of you have been receiving "Resident Strike Guides" from your buildings detailing the changes that would take place. Mine, in particular, consists of a more onerous entry/exit protocol, ceased package delivery, trash duties, limited guest policies, among other things.
As someone who doesn't care to have the door held open for me, there is part of me that would welcome a strike just to see some of the insufferable entitled jabronis (as an aside, why is it that when you hit 70 years old in NYC you turn into a completely ungrateful cunt?) that live in my building have to take out their trash. Package delivery and access would be annoying, but the first of all first world problems. I love bullshitting with our building staff and they've always been incredible to me, hoping they get a palatable deal.
thoughts?
I fully support the strike. Doormen in NYC and across America go through a lot of shit that most of us never think about. Standing there all day and night, dealing with drug-fueled individuals who mess with them, putting up with uppity rich tenants who find a way to complain about everything, doing the menial tasks behind the scenes that keep the building going. Putting up with that and many other things, only to have sick leave cut, healthcare benefits pushed down, and pay raises stagnated - all while dealing with inflation pushed through the roof and NYC rent surges.
I am sure there are some shitty doormen out there. However, every single time I've encountered one in NYC they are the most down-to-earth and friendly people I've ever met. Lots of them go above and beyond in customer service, and you can tell the difference between those who are just trying to do the bare minimum and the ones who actually seem to give a fuck about you. Many are immigrants who are struggling to put food on the table for families, those who want a better life for their children.
Obligatory fuck Vornado and Related Partners, both of whom are scummy companies. I've sat across the table from Related many times, and I also interviewed for JBG prior to their Vornado acquisition. Not a fan of the new management styles they both have, but that's a personal bias I guess. Hope these doormen get what they are owed, even if some 60 year old housewife has to actually take out her own damn trash.
To be fair, doormen get very good pay and benefits, and have insane job security. Also, doormen don't do a lot of the menial tasks you are referring to, that is done by porters and supers. I support their right to strike, I think labor should be paid whatever they can get away with demanding, but I also want to correct the notion that doormen are making minimum wage, with no benefits, and are dealing with unclogging toilets all day.
I really must not understand what's going on in hyper luxury buildings, because I have never been in a building, let alone lived in, where residents didn't take their own trash to the compactor. At the end of the day, that's barely different than your suburban subdivided homeowner taking their trash to the curb.
That being said, I do understand what you mean about doormen being treated like shit occasionally. Though the people who do that probably treat everyone in their lives like that, no sure it's related to the actual job.
"Doormen" is convenient short hand, the CBA covers doormen, porters, supers and maintenance crews. In the spirit of correcting notions, these folks don't just solely stand in front of the building and open doors.
Great points - thanks for your insight. [ebitDUMBDUMB] is right in his implication of what I was trying to say - I was more or less voicing my opinions and experiences of all lower building staff, covering doormen to janitors. Am definitely aware that they don't get minimum wage, but damn it seems like it isn't the easiest job ever! Just feel for the guys, hope they'll come out of this on top.
Also - you would be ridiculously surprised how many people don't do the simplistic tasks such as taking their trash down the hall. It's insane, and the narcissism of many people is highlighted by how they react to seemingly menial tasks. I'm sure you've heard that many people judge others based on how they treat the janitor, the waiter, the repairman, etc. I'm definitely in that category. I'm sure a lot of people in these luxury buildings are perfectly okay with taking their own trash out (for example), but damn, we got some entitled people that would revolt about that in this world. Really shows how out-of-touch some folks are.
Again, thanks for your in-depth analysis of the subject! Enjoyed reading it.
Is this a fucking Billions episode?
Chuck Rhodes just needs to stand up on top of some random dude's car on 3rd Avenue and yell "TAKE BACK OUR CITY" to Related & it'll all be good. Always how it works in real life, definitely zero percent chance of it backfiring!
I quit Billions on Ep 4 of S6. Honestly surprised I made it that long. Went back and showed S1 & S2 w/ fiance and was just nostalgic about how good it used to be. Major L
What the fuck is a doorman? What type of backwater American thing is this? Next, you'll be telling me you still use the steam engine or horse-drawn carriages!
why are they striking? are they getting underpaid? I see all luxury buildings having crazy high monthly maintenance fees for owners, so I'm assuming these doormen are clearing 6 digits for sitting on their asses and having no real skills or knowledge.
the key sticking points are healthcare and vacation/sick days
also no doorman makes anywhere near 6 figures. the current salary cap for this union is under $50k... yes you get some christmas tips but not another $50k
Uh, you do realize that they are striking because they are going to reduce their benefits, right? This isn't about being treated poorly, this is about being treated (potentially) too well.
Try and keep up, OK?
I see, thanks
Time to include some actual data.
Yes, the old rate came out to about $55,000/yr, assuming a 40 hour work week and 52 weeks a year worked. However, as you can see, this isn't the true story, since 32BJ/SIEU also negotiated a benefits package which is worth ~28,000/yr. So while take-home pay isn't much, the actual value of the employment contract is 50% higher - one of the trade offs of having the amazing benefits is that you don't get as much money in your pocket.
Moreover, as you note, tips are a thing. If you work in a 100 unit building, and each resident gives you $100, that's a cool ten grand, probably untaxed, on top of all else. Again, I'm not claiming these guys live like rock stars, but with total compensation + benefits hovering around $80,000 before tips, that's solidly middle class... and the entire point of a union is pretty much just that - ensure middle class stability for members.
So I am a red blooded capitalist who generally despises unions. Having said that, I agree with pretty much everything above (in favor of the doormen). I'm one of the few in my building who tips my doorman well at year end as a sign of respect and gratitude, but "tips don't pay for rent, food and healthcare". Besides what was said above, I think there are a few other things worth noting:
All the union employees actually get screwed during a strike: Doorman (and other employees) don't get paid (well) during a strike. They might get some small token strike pay out of a strike fund (and maybe a bit more if they actively participate in a strike), but it's basically nothing. They can collect unemployment after two weeks.
Also, I've never met a "decent" real estate management company. They all seem to be complete shit. The employees there are one step short of government employees - unemployable in any other field.
On more practical terms, some of the "solutions" suggested by the management company are ridiculous. I'm not talking about small things like taking out my own trash, but things like "holding recycling for the duration of a potential strike" just sounds like a rat and cockroach problem no matter how much we "clean and rinse" it before hand.
Also, we are supposed to be issued security badges, but given how close we are to a potential strike, no details have been shared about how and when this will happen. Given the number of buildings effected... I'm also curious where all these security guards are coming from.
And while this doesn't affect me, I think it's crazy that they can prevent move ins and outs. I kind of get it, but I'd be super pissed if I was just about to move in or out (whether renting, buying or selling). What does that mean for all those poor f'ers?
One of the things that I love about Caterpillar is that they cross-train their managers to work on the production line. They've had a contentious relationship with their union in the past, so when the union strikes, Caterpillar shuts down the production line for a day or two, and then has everyone who works in management or engineering drop what they are doing and move to the factory and take on their assigned responsibilities.
Because of this system, Caterpillar has better negotiating power.
If you live in a co-op or a condo building, and you own your home, right now, your ability to do the work of running the building-- taking out the trash, running stuff, fixing the hot water, etc is a great deal of bargaining power. And I think a lot of this is ultimately going to come down to how the building works together as a community to help each other.
I understand that a lot of people who do building work are underpaid, and that inflation is out of control. Your goal right now is to make sure that the bargaining stops at $25/hour + benefits, not $30/hour + benefits + exorbitant union dues + $50/hour for the senior guys. You want to pay building employees enough for them to be comfortable and happy and not overworked, but wages and assessments never go down either.
The way that a building can demostrate resolve is for the condo board members to lead the charge on doing work. Also, people who volunteer for responsibilities around the building should have their assessments waived (or if landlords go this route, their rent reduced).
The beauty of all of this is that (I think) reduced assessments and reduced rent are tax-free.
I understand people love the building employees. And we have a really strong labor market right now. But, if homeowners can happily run the building for 30 days, 60 days, 90 days, however long-- you guys are doing yourselves and your neighbors a huge favor, and maybe the union will soften some of its toughest demands.
Now, I am not an investment banker working 100 hours a week. I feel for all of the analysts pulling those kinds of hours AND dealing with this situation. Hopefully the banks (who have an interest in keeping inflation contained) will either protect analyst weekends a little better and encourage them to volunteer in their buildings. But for the folks who have spare time, this is an opportunity to help be a part of your building community as well.
There's a LOT of smart people here on the forums. Most people have better stuff to do than deal with condo boards, but if people get tasked with building processes and actually get to see how things work, there's also an opportunity to find efficiencies and find ways to run things better, too. If you live in a $1mm condo and can figure out a way to help the building increase its value by 5% by getting HOAs down by $100/mo, that's just as good as earning $50K at work. Better yet, it might even be tax-free.
Events like this often help test and build communities.
Good luck to everybody.
Wall Street could actually do the condo boards a huge favor by having a policy that analysts will not be admitted to the building on Saturdays. Your badge will not work and you will not be permitted inside.
Saturdays, do four or six hours of work around your building for the duration of the strike.
If you have a STEM undergrad, and you live in a condo building or coop, try to do some work related to the water or building HVAC systems.
If GS, MS, BofA, etc all get together and say they're doing this policy for the duration of the strike and make it about some ESG thing around building communities and volunteer work, and encouraging landlords to pay employees better without necessarily capitulating, it will probably limit the retaliation from unions.
This country does need to do a better job of respecting hands on work and getting the basic stuff done, like food and building workers. The merger or IPO can wait. Having a bunch of 22-year-old analysts with Harvard Econ degrees go around the building with vacuum cleaners for six hours every weekend is going to teach some mutual respect between both Wall Street and Main Street, and might go some way towards healing the differences in our country. And I think the analysts who actually have to do this are probably going to be a bit better at working on deals when they're at the VP or MD level, especially in energy or basic materials. (That said, I'm just a dumb QR who builds statistical models rather than directly helping and advising companies).
Labor relations, commodities inputs, I think these are going to be really important themes in the economy over the next decade or so. And I think Wall Street needs to understand what is going through the heads of the everyday working person, and how it can be a little more relatable and/or make smart investments that create opportunities for these people.
I've never heard of any doorman in nyc being expected to take out people's trash for them. That service would be done by maintenance staff, which is a totally different class of workers.
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