BUILDING OPERATORS LABOR RELATIONS (BOLR)
Division of BOMA/Philadelphia
The BOMA/Philadelphia Board of Directors approved the merger of BOMA/Philadelphia and BOLR, with BOLR becoming a division of BOMA/Philadelphia, at the September 12, 1996 Board meeting. BOLR has its own, separate from BOMA/Philadelphia, Board of Directors and Bylaws.
Purpose:
BOLR is an organization of building owners and agents who directly or indirectly, through janitorial contractors, employ cleaners and maintenance personnel in Center City office buildings. These employees, in most cases, are members of Service Employees International Union, SEIU 32BJ, AFL-CIO. BOLR represents its members in all labor relations matters involving SEIU 32BJ.
Every three years BOLR negotiates a city-wide, multi-employer Collective Bargaining Agreement. BOLR also represents its members in grievance hearings whenever SEIU 32BJ files a grievance against a member building. This step of the grievance procedure eliminates the considerable expense of going directly to arbitration, as called for in the non-BOLR collective bargaining agreements.
BOLR has its own set of Bylaws. The Bylaws permit three classifications of membership:
- Regular Member: Buildings, which directly employ SEIU 32BJ members. These buildings automatically recognize SEIU 32BJ.
- Site Agreement Member: Buildings, which employ contractors who employ SEIU 32BJ members. The contractor is bound by the collective bargaining agreement, but the building is not. The building does not recognize SEIU 32BJ. The contractor who is the employer recognizes SEIU 32BJ. The building is not in this case the employer.
- Contractor: Janitorial service contractors may be members of BOLR, however, this is limited to contractors doing a business volume in excess of $1,000,000 with SEIU 32BJ members. Contractor participation in BOLR is encouraged since in most cases the contractor is the legal employer of SEIU 32BJ members; however, control of BOLR is maintained by the building owners and their agents by limiting contractor’s representation on the Board of Directors.
Dues:
Regular and Site Agreement Members - Annual dues are based on the gross square footage of the building of which the Member is Owner or Agent according to the following schedule:
| Category | Cost |
|---|---|
| Up to 99,000 square feet | $445 |
| 100,000 to 149,999 sq. ft. | $540 |
| 150,000 to 199,999 sq. ft. | $760 |
| 200,000 to 399,999 sq. ft. | $1,010 |
| 400,000 to 599,999 sq. ft. | $1,270 |
| 600,000 to 799,999 sq. ft. | $1,520 |
| 800,000 to 999,999 sq. ft. | $2,030 |
| 1 million sq. ft. and over | $2,535 |
| Contractor Members: | $3,300 |
BOLR Board of Directors
The Board of Directors (Board) of the Division shall consist of an uneven number of not less than eleven (11), nor more than fifteen (15). At least ten (10) Directors shall be either Regular Members or Site Agreement Members and other individuals otherwise affiliated with the industry. A maximum of five (5) Directors may be Contractor Members. The Members of the BOLR elect Directors for a term of two (2) years.
Executive Officers:
The Executive Officers of BOLR shall be a Chairman, Vice Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer. The Vice Chairman may also be Treasurer. The Officers of BOLR shall also be Directors. The Board elects the officers every two (2) years at its bi-annual meeting. While BOMA/Philadelphia members do from time-to-time serve on the BOLR board and BOLR members serve on the BOMA board, there is no such requirement provided for in the bylaws of either organization.
Members of BOMA/Philadelphia and members of BOLR are invoiced separately for their appropriate membership dues.
