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New York City Fire Marshals Show Burning Interest in Union
The alarm bell rings, and you hear on the intercom, “A fire has been reported on the 14th floor. Please exit the building by the nearest stairwell.” Sure, it's annoying, particularly if it’s a false alarm, but if it’s for real, you might be thankful that a CWA member saved your life.
On Aug. 15 a unit of 147 fire safety directors employed by Augenbright Security in New York City voted 118-1 in a National Labor Relations Board election to join CWA.
Impressed with the unity, militancy and success of CWA members on strike against Verizon last year, Fred Jonas, a fire safety director in a building occupied by Verizon, turned to Local 1105 to inquire about the union.
The local was initially interested in about 65 fire safety directors who worked in Verizon buildings, but the company tried to argue that they were security guards, said local Organizer Rick Morrison.
Meeting with attorneys, they learned that New York City requires every building over seven stories or occupied by at least 100 people to have a fire safety director, or fire marshal, responsible for alarms, extinguishers and fire code compliance.
“In February we found out that it wasn’t just Verizon buildings we had to go after either, but also the other buildings where Augenbright had fire marshals,” Morrison said.
Inconsistency in pay and working conditions drove the campaign as Morrison, Jonas and local Organizer Lourdes Delgado built an organizing committee, with strong support from local President Keith Edwards. On June 6 they filed for an election.
“Fred did an enormous amount of one-on-one contact,” Morrison said. “He set us up with people we could trust, people we could talk to.”
Fire Marshals Hewlett Ferguson, Ovid Ford, Alfred Vasquez and Akakuru Uche joined the organizing committee and helped reach out to colleagues in more than 40 buildings in all five city boroughs. About half the buildings are occupied by Verizon. Most of the others are court buildings.
The fire marshals are now waiting for the NLRB to resolve 9 challenged ballots and to certify the election. “They’re overwhelmed, they’re shocked” with the success of their campaign, Delgado said.
Edwards welcomed them to the local. “We’ll be in bargaining real soon,” he said.
On Aug. 15 a unit of 147 fire safety directors employed by Augenbright Security in New York City voted 118-1 in a National Labor Relations Board election to join CWA.
Impressed with the unity, militancy and success of CWA members on strike against Verizon last year, Fred Jonas, a fire safety director in a building occupied by Verizon, turned to Local 1105 to inquire about the union.
The local was initially interested in about 65 fire safety directors who worked in Verizon buildings, but the company tried to argue that they were security guards, said local Organizer Rick Morrison.
Meeting with attorneys, they learned that New York City requires every building over seven stories or occupied by at least 100 people to have a fire safety director, or fire marshal, responsible for alarms, extinguishers and fire code compliance.
“In February we found out that it wasn’t just Verizon buildings we had to go after either, but also the other buildings where Augenbright had fire marshals,” Morrison said.
Inconsistency in pay and working conditions drove the campaign as Morrison, Jonas and local Organizer Lourdes Delgado built an organizing committee, with strong support from local President Keith Edwards. On June 6 they filed for an election.
“Fred did an enormous amount of one-on-one contact,” Morrison said. “He set us up with people we could trust, people we could talk to.”
Fire Marshals Hewlett Ferguson, Ovid Ford, Alfred Vasquez and Akakuru Uche joined the organizing committee and helped reach out to colleagues in more than 40 buildings in all five city boroughs. About half the buildings are occupied by Verizon. Most of the others are court buildings.
The fire marshals are now waiting for the NLRB to resolve 9 challenged ballots and to certify the election. “They’re overwhelmed, they’re shocked” with the success of their campaign, Delgado said.
Edwards welcomed them to the local. “We’ll be in bargaining real soon,” he said.