Public defenders to return to work nearly two months after striking

A legal aid organization announced their members had ratified new labor contracts and returned to work following over a month of striking. Screenshot via Instagram/cambaworkersunited

By Noah Powelson

After nearly two months of striking, union members for two legal aid organizations ratified new labor contracts, leaving only one organization left on the picket line.

On Aug. 26, legal aid workers for the nonprofit CAMBA, which offers free civil legal services to low-income New Yorkers in the areas of housing, foreclosure and immigration law, ratified a new bargaining agreement with their employers. They followed the recent successful ratification vote of the Office of the Appellate Defender, which ratified their own contract on Aug. 11.

The recent contract ratifications represent the near end of a legal aid labor movement led by the Association of Association of Legal Advocates and Attorneys - UAW Local 2325 - that threatened to bring the city’s court system to a halt unless concessions were made.

"CAMBA is pleased that our dedicated CAMBA Legal Services staff attorneys and paralegals have returned to work as of August 27,” a spokesperson for CAMBA said in a statement. “We look forward to continuing to provide high-quality legal services and advocacy for the individuals and families who rely on us."

The union that represents CAMBA workers, CAMBA Legal Services Workers United, announced the ratification vote had passed on social media, along with details of the new contract deal. The union represents roughly 50 members.

The main changes to the contract include a minimum 10 percent wage increase for all members, along with a 19 percent increase over the life of the contract, according to the union. Paralegals also saw their wage floor increase from $53,639 to $62,000 a year.

A three percent cost of living adjustment was also added to the contract, along with increased paid time off, paid bar study period and materials, health insurance during unpaid sabbaticals and more. The union also highlighted new gains in terms of workload management, a common demand across all unions who said the biggest issue keeping attorneys in staff was burnout.

“During this last week, we extracted concessions from our management that we were told were not possible, deepened our bonds with our union siblings, and proved without a doubt that when we fight, we win,” CLSWU said on social media. “We couldn’t have done this without our members, our Bargaining Committee, our Contract Action team, and our [ALAA] union siblings.”

CAMBA union workers were one of first to go on strike and one of the longest to stay on the picket line as union shops at other legal aid organizations that either threatened to or did go on strike agreed on new contracts throughout the summer months.

Union workers at the Office of the Appellate Defender stayed on the picket line for over a month before reaching a new bargaining agreement in early August.

On social media, OAD union representatives said their new contract brought all members to a $70,000 wage floor, included increased healthcare and retirement contributions, 26 weeks of parental leave, and more. The union said the average raise for workers was about $2,765, and included a two percent cost-of-living adjustment.

“The OAD union has officially ratified our new collective bargaining agreement,” the OAD union said on social media. “Thank you to everyone who supported us on the picket line.”

With the new ratified contracts, all legal aid unions who threatened to go on strike back in July have returned to the office, except for one.

The smallest of the union shops with 12 members, Goddard Riverside Law Project, was the first to hit the picket line after management made their last and final offer back in early July. Goddard Riverside is a non-profit human service organization that operates housing and family programs, but also has its own law project focusing on tenant advocacy in western Manhattan.

Goddard union members started their strike on July 10, and will officially be on the picket line for two months next week.