real esatate rebate

It is a crazy regulation. Prevailing wages were determined to be the same as union doorman/super wages by Department of Finance. So every one has to pay union wages now. It is not an issue for larger buildings as they are already unionized but smaller buildings have an issue.

Still applies to large buildings who bid out work and hire contractors

Still applies to large buildings who bid out work and hire contractors

Still applies to large buildings who bid out work and hire contractors

Applies to virtually all buildings except the ones with really low priced apartments.

It's a bit crazy I would think the unions might even be upset about this.
Produces a strong "free rider" problem for non union buildings.
Why would a nonunion building staff decide to unionize if they can get union rates & negotiation power without paying union dues?

Steve, That is a great point. I had not thought about union dues.

I guess you pay union dues for job security and more flexible work rules.

@300 - its also a career / life choice thing

Most of the guys who have gone through my non-union building have not been lifers.

Previously living in a union building, they were all in it for life (except 1 young guy who decided to drive Ubers). Obviously the salary/benefits/security allowed this, but you have to want that career.

In my non-union building probably half the guys were taking courses/training at night to move onto another career. A large percentage were also transient taking the job for a year in between other gigs/school/etc.

On the one hand more money is always better.

On the other hand, this may flush out a lot of current staff from non-union buildings if we need to pay union wage anyway - we are going to attract different talent, and be more selective.

What is the typical staff wage (headline and all-in) for union vs non-union currently?

Appx $45 an hour including benefits (healthcare included) for anyone with any mechanical skills (handyman in the regulation's language). Market is appx $30-35 per hour for basic skills (doormen are lower at $20-25 in the market). High-end building may pay more than Union as their systems are very complex. Tips/Year-end in all cases are extra.
https://comptroller.nyc.gov/wp-content/uploads/documents/BuildingServiceEmployeeSchedule-2021-2022.pdf

I have known several guys that worked as doormen in expensive buildings just for a year or two as a kind of good paying stopgap kind of job. Their goal is usually better paying, more fulfilling work.

Thanks, 300. Is the lower non-union pay mostly on the base, benefits, or similarly distributed?

Thanks, 300. Is the lower non-union pay mostly on the base, benefits, or similarly distributed?

Basically healthcare is missing in most cases for non-union doormen and handymen. Hourly pay for doormen may be lower as well.

Is that still true though? I believe a local law came into force a few years ago depending maybe on size of building or number of staff requiring healthcare?
I know my condo started offering it around 2019 or so even though we are non-union, at the recommendation of management company legal

@300's comment above: "I guess you pay union dues for job security and more flexible work rules."

How much do union members pay in dues? (It's probably a wildly complicated formula). It's an area I know virtually nothing about, and I'm curious as to what %age of gross or take-home it represents.

Rate card I found puts 32BJ dues at $900/year with one-time initiation fee of $150.

So not life altering cost, but certainly a dollar figure people making ~$25/hr in direct compensation could be annoyed by ~$0.50/hr of their pay going to this.

Especially could bother them knowing some people are getting the same pay without it costing them nearly $1k/year.

People are rioting over gas price increases that for an American driving 10-15k miles/year add up to about the same $1k/year.

@steve: Thank you for finding that.

I suppose an offset to the cost of union membership would be the healthcare plan or other benefits like life insurance. If membership in the union gets you a coverage at a cheaper rate than if you paid for it yourself, then that $1k/yr might not look so material. As a point of comparison, my share for my healthcare plan last year was just over $1k, while my employer picked up almost $8k of the cost.

It's the whole package of fringes in their contract. Pension, vacation, personal days/sick days etc.

disincentives galore