‘I’ve got a kid I’ve got to take care of’
Fired union workers protest at W’ Terrace parking garage
BY BEN VERDE
Members of Teamsters Local
272 protested outside a ritzy
Windsor Terrace apartment
building on April 22, claiming
its parking garage contractor
fi red the union workers in favor
of cheaper labor.
The workers say they were
given the boot with no notice
on April 18.
“All of this was without a
warning, that’s why we’re out
here,” said terminated parking
lot worker Latif Ginyard.
“In the middle of a pandemic.”
Adding insult to injury,
workers say they were asked
to come in and train their nonunion
replacements after they
were canned.
“Once I showed them my
skills, they took it and ran
with it,” said Ginyard, who
worked at the parking lot on
Caton Place for two years. “I
gave you two years of service
and that’s what you do to me?”
The non-union workers are
paid around $3 to $4 less than
union workers, according to a
Teamsters representative.
“The owner is basically
only really saving on the
union costs, which are like
nickels and dimes,” said former
Committed to Offering
Exceptional Quality and Service
Affordable Costs and Personalized Attention
• Offering No-Contact Virtual Appointments
• Ample Parking
• Specializing in Advance Funeral Planning
• Catered Receptions
2005 West 6th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11223
718-372-1348
www.cusimanoandrussofuneralhome.com
Michael G. Rizzotto, Manager
COURIER L 16 IFE, APR. 30-MAY 6, 2021
garage subcontractor Kris
Trposki of the lot’s operator,
Prompt Parking, which manages,
maintains and monetizes
more than 5,000 parking spots
throughout New York and New
Jersey, according to its website
— and which did not return a
message seeking comment.
The fi ring comes after the
workers say they’ve faced a
particularly pressing year
of work due to the pandemic,
with few willing to work in
person. When one garage
worker fell ill with COVID-19
a few weeks ago, worker Pablo
Zenbuddai says he worked
nonstop to cover for him, even
after being hit by a car riding
his bike.
“I worked 24 hours straight
through, seven days a week.
I even got hit off my bike and
came to work,” Zenbuddai
said. “And Prompt Parking
didn’t even call us and compliment
us.”
For Ginyard, losing his job
is an unwelcome bout of instability
after an already diffi cult
year.
“I’ve got a kid I’ve got to
take care of,” he said. “Eventually
the money’s going to run
out that you do have saved,
and then what?”
Teamsters Local 272 represents
more than 7,000 workers
in parking garages across
New York City.
Kris Trposki and Latif Ginyard say
they were let go from the garage
on Caton Place in favor of cheaper
labor. Photo by Ben Verde
Members of Teamsters Local 272 protested outside the garage.
Photo by Ben Verde
Cusimano & Russo Funeral Home
SERVING THE COMMUNITY OF BROOKLYN FOR OVER 90 YEARS
This firm is owned by a subsidiary of Service Corp. International, 1929 Allen Pkwy, Houston, TX 77019, 713-522-5141. New York state law mandates that all contracts for
prearranged funeral agreements executed by applicants for or recipients of supplemental social security income or medical assistance be irrevocable.
PLATINUM CORPORATE PARTNER
Honoring those whose deals turn the key to the future of our city
Virtual Event May 13th, 2021, 7pm
TO REGISTER schnepsmedia.com/qns/real-estate-power-leaders
*List in formation
Sandy Abbas
Douglas Elliman Real Estate
Irene Amato
ASAP Mortgage Corp
Dallas Bellospirito
REMI Realty
Vincent Buccieri
Today Realty Corp
Joseph Cosentino
Morris Park Realty
Luca DiCiero
NY Space Finders
Matthew Engel
Langsam Property Services
LP Finn
Coach Realtors
Angelo Gonzalez
CORE Realty
Zahra Jafri
Lynx Mortgage Bank LLC
Vira Lynn Jones
A.J. Archer Construction Company
Matthew Korman
Douglas Elliman Real Estate
Judy Markowitz
Energized Realty Group
Jill McDowell
Signature Premier Properties
Jason Orsini
Douglas Elliman Real Estate
Danny Pisani
Contour Mortgage
Michael Rossi
Elegran Real Estate
Joseph Sorbara
ACC Space
Belisario Cruz
Reyn Team
Compass Real Estate
James Whelan
REBNY
Eric Michael Anton
Marcus & Millichap
Sara Golan
Nest Seekers International
Alexis V. McAndrew
Daniel Gale Sotheby’s International Realty
Stephen Preuss
Cushman & Wakefield
Nick Colombos & Angela Dooley
The Colombos-Dooley Team at Compass
Amir Sobhraj
Zara Realty
Raj & Rahul Jaggi
Team Raj Jaggi
/www.cusimanoandrussofuneralhome.com
/www.cusimanoandrussofuneralhome.com
/real-estate-power-leaders