NYCHA Now

NYCHANow chronicles the hard work of the men and women who make the New York City Housing Authority run, reporting the latest news and happenings.

NYCHA Now
NYCHA caretakers
February 2019 Highlighted 

Launching Alternative Work Schedule (AWS)

Michael Corwin

NYCHA caretakersDear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce the launch of Alternative Work Schedule (AWS), a new way of scheduling certain front-line staff that ensures greater coverage at our developments. For the first time in about 50 years, we will have caretakers, their supervisors, assistant resident building superintendents, and resident building superintendents working at our developments from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m., seven days a week, through five staggered shifts.

This is an important and fundamental change in the way we staff our developments, and it will have a significant positive impact on our delivery of services to residents. It allows us to better maintain our buildings and be more responsive to residents while providing more flexibility to staff. We want to acknowledge the extraordinary collaboration of our partner, Teamsters Local 237, and NYCHA leadership which made this historic achievement possible.

On April 1, AWS will launch at 13 consolidated developments: Farragut, Ingersoll, Marcy, Stuyvesant, Tompkins, and Whitman Houses in Brooklyn and Clinton, Dyckman, Harlem River, Polo Grounds Towers, Rangel, Riis, and Saint Nicholas Houses in Manhattan. It will ultimately be rolled out to all our developments across the city.

Eligible Staff and Schedules

Caretakers, Supervisors of Housing Caretakers, Supervising Housing Groundskeepers, Assistant Resident Building Superintendents, and Resident Building Superintendents can elect to remain on their current traditional shift or volunteer for one of the new AWS schedules. New hires may be assigned to an AWS shift. All staff in relevant titles will be asked to select their shift preference, whether it’s the traditional schedule or a new AWS schedule.

  • Traditional schedule: Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., with scheduled weekend overtime
  • AWS schedule 1: 4 days per week, 10 hours per day (6 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.), assigned to work every other weekend as part of the regular work week:
    • Week 1: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday
    • Week 2: Sunday, Monday, Thursday, and Friday
  • AWS schedule 2: 4 days per week, 10 hours per day (8:30 a.m. – 7 p.m.), assigned to work every other weekend as part of the regular work week:
    • Week 1: Sunday, Monday, Thursday, and Friday
    • Week 2: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday
  • AWS schedule 3: 4 days per week, 10 hours per day (6 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.) Monday – Thursday, with no assigned mandatory overtime on weekends
  • AWS schedule 4: 4 days per week, 10 hours per day (6 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.) Tuesday – Friday, with no assigned mandatory overtime on weekends

Incentives and Compensation

Current staff who volunteer for an AWS shift will receive a one-time, taxable bonus of $1,500. In addition, there will be a 20 percent shift differential for all hours worked on weekends as part of AWS schedules 1 and 2 (i.e., staff will be paid 20 percent more for those regularly scheduled weekend hours).

If you have any questions about AWS, you can speak with your supervisor, call AskHR at 212-306-8000, or send an email to AWS@nycha.nyc.gov.

Thank you for being a crucial part of our ongoing efforts to become a better landlord and improve the quality of life for our residents.

Sincerely,

Stanley Brezenoff

Interim Chair and CEO

 

Vito Mustaciuolo

General Manager