July 27, 2026 | Mark Luis Foster
This has been bubbling for about a week, but the local news media is just picking up the story. I actually found the most complete write-up on the issue related to a Minneapolis condo strike on Facebook:
Minneapolis Condo Workers With SEIU Local 26 Vote to Authorize ULP Strike as Push for Historic First Contract Drags On
According to the story, the vote is in response to evident violations of Federal labor law, and following months of bargaining that has still not resulted in a first union contract, a supermajority of the desk attendants at three major Minneapolis high-rise condominiums represented by SEIU Local 26 have voted to authorize an unfair labor practice (“ULP”) strike.
This is an interesting issue, as the it affects three homeowner associations in Minneapolis: River Towns, La Rive and Riverview. From what I understand, the strike involves desk attendants at these properties. Desk Attendant bargaining committee member Michael Rubke had this to say:
“The associations have committed unfair labor practices like refusing to turn over information needed for bargaining.In addition, they have barely moved on wages and have rejected the union healthcare plan. That’s why we decided it was time to take this authorization vote and prepare for action if necessary.”
According to the article on FB, should condo workers strike, it will be the fourth Twin Cities condo worker ULP strike in as many years. Condo workers have walked out multiple times since they publicly began pushing to win a union and better conditions in the industry in 2022.
Their vote gives the ability to call a ULP strike at any point after July 24th, the date of the last scheduled bargaining session on the books between the two sides. After many years of organizing in the industry and multiple months at a joint bargaining table with all three home owners associations, Minneapolis desk attendants at River Towers, La Rive, and Riverview are hoping to end the evident ULPs and win first union contracts that ensure these are stable jobs with affordable healthcare and living wages. Residents have been speaking up too, with nearly 70 of them signing a petition in support of the workers’ proposals.
Not sure how much impact there will be if they strike, but I would imagine a desk attendant would be a major contributor to the operations of these properties, given the traffic flow, security issues, resident communications management, and probably dispatching of maintenance issues.
It’s something we’ll continue to monitor. The Facebook write up I found is HERE. It was also covered on a local TV station this morning but I’ve yet to find the link to their story.
