Talks continue for Center City cleaners
Negotiations continued yesterday between management and 2,350 unionized janitors and maintenance workers who clean Center City buildings, as a strike loomed.
Negotiations continued yesterday between management and 2,350 unionized janitors and maintenance workers who clean Center City buildings, as a strike loomed.
Contracts for the workers who clean 67 buildings - mostly in Center City - expire at midnight. Members of the Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union are preparing to strike if a settlement is not reached.
"Things are moving slower than expected - we seem to be hitting a snag on economic issues," Wayne MacManiman Jr., district chairman for the Mid-Atlantic district of the local, said yesterday.
Union officials say contractors who clean buildings try to use as many part-time workers as possible, not giving them health insurance and paying them $4 an hour less than the average $14 that full-time janitors earn.
Buildings covered by the union include Centre Square, Commerce Square and Cira Centre. - Jan Hefler
























