About 350 workers with the Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation, a major San Francisco affordable housing operator, announced to management today the formation of a union to demand better wages and job protections.
The union hopes to address the automation of the role of some 120 desk clerks, which make up one of TNDC’s largest departments. Evan Oravec, union representative with OPEIU Local 29, told Mission Local that TNDC front desk workers have seen their jobs eliminated and replaced with surveillance cameras.
Oravec said desk clerks serve high-need areas and do more than just sit behind a desk.
Nati Kahsay, a senior international organizer with OPEIU International, said clerks “are responsible for checking in visitors and residents into buildings, de-escalating any incidents, reporting maintenance issues, health issues — anything that protects the residents and the community at large.”
Oravec said he watched a desk clerk defuse a situation between a man with “a rock the size of his head, running after another tenant.”
“This was just a normal thing for her,” Oravec said. “So yes, it’s concerns about having their jobs, but there’s also a deep concern from workers that management does not truly understand what is going on on the ground in these buildings.”
TNDC is a major affordable housing operator and service provider that has expanded beyond the Tenderloin neighborhood, housing nearly 7,000 residents in San Francisco. What began in 1981 with Franciscan Friars acquiring and renovating a run-down SRO, today is a nonprofit operating nearly 50 buildings, including Curran House in the Tenderloin and Casa Adelante in the Mission District.
According to its website, TNDC is “the largest community-based development corporation” in San Francisco. According to its 2023 tax forms, the organization had more than $74 million in net assets.
TNDC spokesperson Edmund Campos declined to comment.
In addition to desk clerks, TNDC employs social workers, janitors, and maintenance workers, as well as office workers like accountants — all of whom are forming a bargaining unit under OPEIU Local 29.
Wages at TNDC have remained stagnant, Oravec said, with no across-the-board wage increases in several years, and at-will employment has resulted in workers being laid off with no notice — both are issues the union hopes to address, among a slate of other concerns.
Some workers “experience homelessness, because they can’t afford housing by themselves with the wage they receive,” Kahsay said. “The workers believe no one who works for TNDC should be unhoused and unable to … live in the city where they serve the community.”
Rosy Rodriguez, who does administrative work with TNDC’s tenant and community services department, said the sudden layoffs in 2023 were “traumatizing” and that other workers began leaving as a result. Those who stayed began organizing the very next day, she said.
“I used to like where I worked a lot,” Rodriguez said, but the culture at TNDC changed and she now sees her work as just a job to pay the bills. “If we got to sit at the table and see how funds are being managed, maybe we could offer some solutions as well.”
TNDC’s 40 social workers and their supervisors are also inundated with high caseloads, Oravec said. “They’re concerned that they’re not able to serve tenants as well as they’d like to because of the sheer amount of work.”
Kevin Liu, an overdose prevention outreach coordinator who gets residents involved in community organizing, said that when social workers are overworked, TNDC can’t deliver on its mission of uplifting residents’ voices — and residents end up suffering as a result.
“It’s been harder to find engaged volunteers when they feel like some of their other basic needs aren’t met,” Liu said.
Workers have formed unions at other affordable housing operators like the Tenderloin Housing Clinic, which Oravec said has fewer tenants but more case managers — something that workers negotiated with management. OPEIU Local 29 also represents workers at other nonprofits like Hamilton Families, GLIDE Foundation, and Compass Family Services.
TNDC workers understand city and state funding can affect their working conditions, he added, but they’re seeking more transparency and a seat at the table to negotiate with management.
Workers will rally today at Boeddeker Park in the Tenderloin.
This article was updated with TNDC’s declination to comment and comments from TNDC workers.
from our fearless leader last friday: Dear TNDC Staff,
On Tuesday, August 12, I learned that some of our employees formed the TNDC Workers Union Organizing Committee. The Committee, in partnership with OPEIU Local 29 (Office and Professional Employees International Union), has requested that TNDC enter into a Card Check Neutrality Agreement (CCNA).
First and foremost, I want to acknowledge that every employee has the legal right to consider and discuss unionization. This is your choice, and it is one that the organization will respect. Our shared mission, the work we do every day, and the trust we have in one another depend on honest dialogue and mutual respect, especially during times of change.
I also want to ensure that everyone has the same information and understands the steps TNDC management is taking. The C-Team and I are in the early stages of learning more about what this request means for our organization. I have notified the TNDC Board of Directors and will be briefing them on possible next steps.
I recognize that people may have different views about what union representation could mean. It’s natural to have questions, and while we don’t yet have all the answers, I want to assure you that our approach will be grounded in:
Respect for every member of our team, with a firm commitment to no retaliation for all members of staff.
A commitment to clear, timely communication.
Open and respectful dialogue with staff organizers and their chosen representatives.
Yesterday, I met with two representatives from OPEIU Local 29 and some of our staff. Our district supervisor, Bilal Mahmood, was also present. The conversation was informative and helpful as we begin to understand the Committee’s concerns and intentions.
Finally, we are in the procurement process which allows us to bring on new vendors to TNDC. I hope to have expertise on board as quickly as possible so we can address the request of the Committee.
Thank you for your care for one another, and dedication to the mission we share.
Have a good weekend.
Warm regards,
Jennifer
They need to cut costs to be able to pay the salaries of those who Manage these joints!!! The workers who do the actual dirty work are a liability to Upper Management!
TNDC hired law firm (Bornstein Law) to harass tenants for no just causes, in many cases: Abuse of power and abuse of discretion; I.e., bs evictions, intimidation and harassment. Pure evil!
Pay the workers! TNDC is corrupt.
Unions are important .
It doesn’t mean a nonprofit , company or government cannot save costs and use others or AI.
I personally , hate AI as I believe it is about money and also allows persons to to learn how to think and problem solve , learn critical thinking and be able to interact in the world .
Today , persons do even know how to use/talk on a phone , add/subtract in their head , write a letter or live unless they have their iphone/computer to do their thinking .
This is causing then harm and also the quality and necessary basics of being a human .
spokesperson declined comment.
has quite a ring to it.
Shut down TNDC.
All these non-profits and thier addiction to the homeless industrial complex make the city worse in so many ways.
No incentive to improve the lives of anyone, just to line their pockets.