Jersey City Council Advances Ordinances that Ban AI-Powered Rent-Fixing Algorithms, Raises Standards for Service Workers in Tax-Abated Buildings for 1^st Time in 13 Years

Ordinances address connected issues brought by rapid development of luxury housing in Jersey City

Jersey City, N.J. — The Jersey City Council Wednesday night voted to introduce two ordinances that address connected issues brought by the city’s rapid development of luxury apartment buildings.

The ordinances would ban Jersey City landlords from using algorithms like RealPage in setting rental prices and raise wage and benefit standards for service workers in tax abated buildings for the first time since 2012.

Ordinances 25-056 and 25-057 were introduced by Councilman James Solomon in partnership with 32BJ SEIU, the largest property services union in the country, which locally represents 105,000 members in New Jersey and New York.

Rental algorithms RealPage and Yardi Systems have been the subjects of several lawsuits that allege landlords, including ones in Jersey City, use them to collude on fixing rental prices. Ordinance 25-057 outright bans Jersey City landlords from using confidential data in rental algorithms.

Ordinance 25-056 raises the floor for compensation for service workers who work in tax abated buildings – porters, concierges and others – to a minimum of $24.72 an hour in wages and benefits. Workers would also receive a minimum of 12 paid holidays a year and two weeks paid vacation after a year of service.

This ordinance would raise wage standards for these workers for the first time since 2012 and ensures that workers in city-financed residential developments are paid a living wage with access to family-sustaining benefits.

Councilors will make a final vote on the ordinances May 21.

“My parents raised our family of 16 here in Jersey City on blue collar wages. My neighborhood was dotted by mom and pop shops, community churches, movie theaters and factories. Today that neighborhood is unrecognizable. My childhood church is a highrise apartment building. The clothing stores, furniture stores, hair salons are gone and so are the jobs. And they’re making it even worse by using algorithms to inflate already enormous rents. If nothing changes, I’m worried that the city I was born and raised in will no longer be available to me in retirement age. I thank the city council for doing the right thing by taking a step toward reining in these landlords. Algorithms like RealPage have no place in Jersey City,” said Kaileen Perez, 32BJ member and security officer.

“Residential workers are the backbone of these buildings, and we deserve a fair share of the wealth we help create. It’s been 13 years since a standard wage has been set for service workers in buildings receiving tax breaks. It's a standard that no longer represents a living wage. And it doesn’t represent our value either. I know what it’s like to have to take out trash and recycling for 200 apartments in one building or handle nearly 100 packages a day while taking all sorts of requests from residents. These ordinances go a long way toward making sure Jersey City stays welcome for essential workers like me,” said Joe Tarrazi, 32BJ member and concierge and porter at Horizon House.

“Jersey City’s development-first mindset has been abused by developers taking advantage of badly outdated wage standards for building service workers and algorithms meant to inflate rents. It’s about time that legislation gets introduced to restrain developers who think they can exploit Jersey City workers and tenants for a quick profit. 32BJ is proud to partner with Councilman James Solomon on introducing these sorely needed ordinances. We look forward to continue supporting their passage in the city council,” said Ana Maria Hill, 32BJ SEIU Vice President and New Jersey State Director.

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32BJ SEIU is a member-driven union representing 15,000 service workers in New Jersey and a total of 185,000 service workers across 12 states and Washington, D.C.