Manny Pastreich

Manny Pastreich wasn’t that far off from being in “Good Will Hunting,” but the labor movement proved a far stronger calling.

The property services union leader grew up in Cambridge, Mass., and went to the same high school as Matt Damon and Ben Affleck (and Bill de Blasio). Pastreich knew Damon from elementary school and they even attended Harvard together, although Damon dropped out to pursue acting full time.

“He was definitely big into the acting program,” Pastreich said. “I would not have predicted that he would become a star. He was a friend of my brother’s.”

Pastreich himself went into the family business. His father founded two health care union locals with the SEIU for hospital and nursing home workers. And Pastreich had an opportunity after college to work on an early labor campaign to organize immigrant janitors throughout the East Coast. He stuck with the union, advising its collective bargaining agreements, and now the 32BJ has 175,000 members. 

Last spring, Pastreich helped his predecessor, Kyle Bragg, strategize a new bargaining agreement for New York City building workers during contentious negotiations with residential owners. The union demanded fair wage increases and employer-paid health care, while the Realty Advisory Board wanted workers to share health care costs and reduce their vacation and sick time. More than 10,000 union members marched on Park Avenue, and landlords agreed to most of their demands a few weeks later.

“Members had sacrificed so much during the pandemic,” Pastreich said. “Members wanted the respect and reward for what they’ve done, and industry was at a moment of transition, coming back from the pandemic. Members rallied as they always do.”

Now Pastreich is leading negotiations with property owners for commercial buildings on behalf of the union’s office cleaners. He believes it could be the most challenging contract the union has faced in the past decade, if not longer, because his members are grappling with rising costs of living while owners are contending with high vacancy rates and rising interest rates.

“To this point, we have found a path, we have been able to communicate, and we have been able to understand each other,” he said. “We have to be able to deliver the wages people need so they can live in New York City, secure their retirement, and have protections they need to do their jobs.”