Allentown custodians, maintenance workers to vote on joining Teamsters union

UPDATE: Workers vote overwhelmingly to join Teamsters

ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Custodial and maintenance workers in the Allentown School District will decide in a Thursday afternoon vote whether to join Teamsters Local Union #773 — a move that would require them to dissolve their independent union of more than 20 years.

The Independent Maintenance and Custodial Association reached out to the Teamsters to seek representation, hoping a larger, stronger union could help workers secure a better contract when the current one ends in June.

"They’re hopefully going to be able to come in here and get us better contracts than we’ve ever seen," said John Page, president of IMCA and a school district truck driver.

But first, the district's 127 maintenance and custodial workers must support joining the Teamsters by a supermajority vote in Thursday’s election.

Also on the ballot Thursday, workers can vote for the status quo and remain in the IMCA, or alternatively select no union — which the Allentown School District recommends.

No union?

ASD sent out three letters to maintenance and custodial workers throughout December recommending they vote for no union representation.

Page said many maintenance and custodial workers were insulted by these letters and took them personally.

ASD contends that it has the right to campaign before an election.

When asked about recommending no union representation, the district said via a spokesperson that it "does not intend to interfere with the employee’s choice as to who represents them, but believes that the union members could benefit by not paying union dues and work directly with the District."

IMCA workers currently pay $30 toward dues each month. Under the Teamsters, workers would pay 2.5 times their hourly rate each month, Page said.

"The guys understand that with those higher union dues, we’re going to have a lot more strength, a lot more power," he added.

Page also said initiation fees cited in one of ASD’s letters are not applicable to IMCA members if they opt to join the Teamsters.

Shawn Ritter, an IMCA union member and grounds crew worker, said he plans to vote to join the Teamsters because he hopes to earn more money with a new contract negotiated with their help.

After 15 years with ASD, Ritter doesn’t think forgoing union representation is a good idea. Even with the IMCA, the district hasn’t been moved enough on pay increases, he said.

"I don’t think without a union they will do anything for us," Ritter said. "I think it would just get worse [with] not having a union."

'Almost criminal' wages

One IMCA executive board member, who requested anonymity for fear of retribution from his employer, said he’s also voting to join the Teamsters because he believes they’ll help custodial and maintenance workers secure better pay, which will hopefully attract more qualified workers to the district.

"You get what you get for the bottom [wage]," the maintenance worker said. "If you were offering $20 an hour to start, well then you’re going to draw a better [group] of people who are more experienced or qualified."

The same worker said the school environment presents unique challenges that aren’t reflected in the current level of wages workers earn.

"Custodians have to clean vomit, feces [and] all the other disgusting things these children can do in school," he added. "Who wants to come in and work for [low pay] when they could go to McDonald’s and flip burgers for the same if not better?"

As of 2024-25, ASD custodians start at an annual salary of $28,773.31. The highest-paid custodians earn $53,809 a year.

For this school year, the annual pay for ASD mechanics ranges from $41,362.85 to $58,022; the annual pay for ASD groundskeepers ranges from $34,003.60 to $51,812; and the annual pay for ASD truck drivers ranges from $32,434.63 to $50,250.

Brian Taylor, secretary-treasurer of Teamsters LU #773, said these wages are "almost criminal."

"It’s a non-survivable wage," he said. "Our goal obviously is to write a contract where people have a living wage, and it’s a fair and just contract, and that’s just not the case here. It’s terrible."

Workers want pay increases

Teamsters LU #773 represents custodial and maintenance workers in a handful of other Lehigh Valley districts, Taylor said. These districts’ workers are making significantly more than ASD workers, and in some cases double, he added.

For instance, Teamsters LU #773 represents Nazareth Area School District’s maintenance and custodial workers. As of 2024-25, Nazareth Area custodians earn $54,641.60 annually, and maintenance workers earn an annual salary of $60,382.40 or $67,891.20 based on their classification.

Manny Calderon, vice president of IMCA and an ASD carpenter, said he’ll be voting to join the Teamsters because he also wants to see ASD workers receive pay increases in the upcoming contract.

"Every time we discuss a new contract, [district representatives] always say, 'Oh, we don’t have any money for you guys, you have to take a pay freeze or you might get fired,'" he said.

"How are you going to say you don’t have enough money to pay us, but then almost every month you get two [or] three administrators getting paid six figures?"

In the current five-year contract, ASD custodial and maintenance workers had two years of pay freezes followed by a 15% raise and two subsequent 3% wage increases. There were no step increases.

In response to a question about workers’ dissatisfaction with pay, the district pointed to the maintenance and custodial workers’ 21% pay increase over the last three years.

"Additionally, the salary increases negotiated in the last Contract were notably higher than those received by most other groups within the organization, reflecting the District’s commitment to supporting custodial and maintenance staff," the district’s response reads.

Health care costs

IMCA leadership said health care costs are another concern members want to be addressed in the upcoming contract.

Custodial and maintenance workers saw their health care costs increase as of 2023 when theAllentown Education Association got its most recent contract. IMCA workers had previously agreed to follow the same insurance plan as the district’s teachers.

As a result, custodial and maintenance workers now pay anywhere from $80 to $230 per month for health care; they previously all paid $80 per month.

In an emailed response provided by a spokesperson, the district said custodial and maintenance workers "now receive the same high-level, platinum-tier benefits" as ASD teachers, whose union "represents a far larger group and has considerable leverage in its negotiations with the District."

Understaffing

In addition to pay concerns, IMCA leadership said understaffing impacts workers’ daily tasks, pulling them away from their official duties to help elsewhere in ASD.

Calderon, IMCA vice president, said "favoritism" leads to the same workers repeatedly being asked to do these tasks.

"They don’t send anybody else to do the jobs that nobody wants to do," Calderon said. "They always send the same people, the same people who are the least resistant."

The district acknowledged that it is understaffed by about 28 workers in the custodial and maintenance department, noting understaffing is a nationwide problem for schools. ASD also works with four outside contractors to provide staffing in the department.

The district said understaffing “occasionally” requires ASD workers to assist with tasks outside their official duties to keep operations running smoothly.

"The District follows a structured approach in these instances," ASD’s response reads. "Work assignments are made in accordance with the guidelines outlined in the Collective Bargaining Agreement, which considers factors such as the needs of the district, current workloads, and employee seniority."

Integrity of current union

Another reason IMCA is considering joining the Teamsters is because members are questioning the integrity of IMCA, union leadership said. In recent years, IMCA presidents have moved into managerial roles in the department.

"Everyone’s questioning, why is the union president always turning around and then getting hired as a boss overseeing everybody then?" said Page, the current IMCA president.

If IMCA dissolves, there would be no union president based in Allentown School District; instead, the Allentown bargaining unit would elect shop stewards to handle daily concerns from members, Page said.

ASD maintenance and custodial workers would also elect some of its members to negotiate the upcoming contract alongside Teamster leaders.

The district said it hopes contract negotiations can begin in late January if a union is selected and there are no appeals to the election.