Thousands of security guards employed at universities, office buildings, and state facilities across the greater Boston area are threatening to strike if their demands for improved health insurance benefits are not met. The guards, represented by the union 32BJ SEIU, gathered Thursday afternoon in Post Office Square to rally for better coverage, supported by state representative Marjorie Decker and union leaders.
The union’s current contracts expired on July 31, with health benefits remaining the primary unresolved issue, according to Kevin Brown, 32BJ’s executive vice president and state director for Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Brown noted that while most of the ten contractors with whom 32BJ negotiates have been open to union proposals, Northeast Security, the largest employer with about 1,400 union security workers, remains the only holdout. Representatives for Northeast Security were not immediately available for comment.
The union is calling for employers to participate in the 32BJ Health Fund, a union-run program widely considered an industry standard along the East Coast. The fund would provide members with coverage free of premiums and deductibles and streamline benefits for security officers who change employers within the area. Brown described the fund as an “industry norm” and emphasized the union’s goal of securing equitable healthcare for its members.
Security officer John Mastrangelo, who works for Allied Universal at One Congress Street, the headquarters of State Street Corporation, highlighted the importance of improved health coverage. Mastrangelo, who requires ongoing medical care for a mechanical heart valve and takes blood thinners regularly, said his current plan’s $1,000 deductible and premiums impose significant financial burdens while offering limited benefits. “We’re expected to put our lives on the line and protect the client and their property,” he said. “Yet they don’t want us to protect ourselves.”
A recent report from 32BJ and the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center revealed that about 15% of full-time security guards in the state are uninsured. Approximately 40% rely on coverage through the Massachusetts Health Connector or a spouse’s employer plan, while roughly one-third have employer-sponsored insurance. Many guards opt out of employer plans due to high costs, the study found.
At the rally, Decker credited changes implemented during the Trump administration for increasing pressure on the Health Connector, as federal tax credits expire and insurers withdraw plans. Nearly 350,000 Massachusetts residents currently rely on the program. “When companies do not pay their workers their values,” Decker said, “all of us actually subsidize those companies through our tax dollars.”
Brown emphasized that the union has included the 32BJ Health Fund in negotiations for past contracts, but employers have consistently declined to participate. After the rally, workers marched through downtown Boston carrying signs and chanting. Brown said the union hopes to reach a resolution without striking but acknowledged the ongoing frustration among members.