HTC Rallies at City Hall with Build Up NYC

More than 100 of our members joined a rally at City Hall on April 1 to address important issues that are related to development.

It was a Build Up NYC rally, and it was loud and well-attended. It caught the attention of a number of elected officials as well as members of the public.

As many members already know, Build Up NYC is an alliance of working men and women who are committed to good jobs and responsible development. It is an alliance of labor unions and community groups who are advocating for a stronger and more vibrant middle-class through safe and responsible development.

“As we’ve said many times before, unions like ours do not oppose development—in fact we support it,” Hotel Trades Council President Peter Ward reminded Hotel Voice this week. “But it must be responsible development. It must be development that pays good wages during the building phase and then again when the project is completed. Development should be done safely and should contain an affordable housing component.”

That was the message delivered at City Hall last week at the Build Up NYC rally. “What do we want?” Rank and File Organizer Juana Velez asked the large crowd, which included a sizeable contingent from the Empire Hotel. “Union jobs!,” the demonstrators answered.

Public Advocate Letitia James also led the crowd in some chants. “Strong communities run this town!” James said. “All pushes to rezone should include affordable housing!” she added.
James also spoke of the importance of “going green,” a reference to the need to pay attention to the environment when considering development projects, and several other speakers agreed. The Public Advocate said that when it came to development it should no longer be business as usual.

“There should be no more sweet deals for developers only,” she said. “All development should be a catalyst to create union construction jobs as well as permanent union jobs.”

The Build Up NYC coalition is committed to growing and sustaining the middle class. The coalition strongly believes that a stronger middle class can only be grown if workers have safe jobs with good wages, affordable family healthcare, and retirement benefits. Build Up NYC also believes that access to training and apprenticeship programs in some industries will create opportunities for advancement and real careers.

Build Up NYC also recognizes that there are responsible employers and seeks to level the playing field for them. “When contractors compete by cutting wages and benefits, workers lose the ability to support their families and businesses in their communities, and responsible contractors are put at an economic disadvantage,” the coalition says on its website (buildupnyc.org). “Developers who construct and maintain buildings in

New York have a responsibility to the communities and workers who make their success possible. Developers and employers have a responsibility not only to make sure the construction, operations, maintenance and other jobs are good jobs, but to support a 21st Century infrastructure. They have a responsibility to see that the jobs created by their projects pay well and provide benefits.”

It’s no secret that the city’s infrastructure—as well as the country’s—needs upgrading. Build Up NYC is working to make sure that employers and developers do their fair share in this area and do so with fair wages and the creation of affordable housing.

Anyone who looks around our city can see that there is an ongoing development boom. It is up to unions like ours and coalitions like Build Up NYC to fight for the high road on economic development. That means jobs with good wages and projects that have an affordable housing component, and plenty of workers did an excellent job of outlining these goals at the City Hall rally on April 1.

The April 1 rally at City Hall.

Federico Daniel, Julie Ilviaz, Juan Burges, and Carlos Geraldo, all employees of the NYLO, were at the rally.

Martin Egusquiza, Lexington Hotel, and Christopher Reyes, Hilton Newark Penn Station, were at the rally.

Rank and File Organizer Juana Velez, left, was among those leading the chants at the rally.