The Hotel Trades Council, a major city union advocating for legislation to prohibit New York hotels from outsourcing certain front-line positions, has been regularly contracting out work for its own Manhattan headquarters, including to non-union companies.
Records from the US Labor Department reveal that over the past decade, the union has spent more than $700,000 on external firms for maintenance and cleaning at its offices located at 701-709 Eighth Avenue.
Among these expenditures, over $240,000 went to Sterling Cleaning Services, a non-union company, in 2022-2023. Additionally, more than $53,000 was paid to RJR Maintenance Group, also a non-union entity.
Union’s outsourcing criticized as it supports bill to limit hotels’ use of contracted workers
Marcia Azeez, who is the chief financial officer for both companies, oversees these transactions. In 2023 alone, the union allocated $109,296 for computer services, $83,000 for political consulting, $2,149,365 for legal counsel, and $702,568 for general consulting services.
The union-backed hotel legislation aims to mandate that essential hotel staff, such as housekeeping and maintenance personnel, be directly employed by the hotels rather than hired through contracts. Bozzello criticized this stance, arguing that it highlights a double standard, as the union itself does not adhere to such practices for its operations.
Vijay Dandapani, president and CEO of the Hotel Association of New York City, emphasized the importance of flexibility for hotels in outsourcing work to manage costs and perform tasks that union workers may not handle. He pointed out that both union and non-union hotels frequently outsource specialized tasks, such as deep cleaning and HVAC maintenance, due to cost constraints and operational requirements.
The union contends that comparing its outsourcing practices to those of hotels is flawed. HTC spokesperson Austin Shafran argued that the comparison is irrelevant, likening it to comparing “apples to pianos.”
He asserted that while office buildings use outside services for cleaning and maintenance, the legislation focuses on core hotel roles which are crucial for maintaining security and cleanliness, thus necessitating direct employment by the hotels. Shafran also defended the union’s use of external consultants as standard practice.
