The marchers chanted “Yes We Can” in several languages and “What do we want? Green jobs!” as they walked past offices and restaurants during the busy lunch hour.

Service Employees International Union Local 26 represents more than 4,000 janitors who clean the majority of commercial buildings in the seven-country metropolitan area. The union currently is bargaining a new contract with major cleaning contractors.

Employers are insisting on a number of givebacks, including having the right to convert many full-time jobs to part-time, the right to eliminate workload protections and the right to deny union representatives access to worksites, the union said.

At the same time they face concessionary demands, janitors are seeking to improve working conditions – and save energy and protect the environment – by instituting “green job” practices. These include more day shifts – to reduce lighting and heating costs and allow members to be with their families – and the use of safer chemicals.

“We are willing and open and in fact eager to put innovations at the table that would lead to cost reductions, that would be a win for companies, workers and building owners,” Local 26 President Javier Morillo Alicea said at a rally prior to the march. He said the largest buildings could save $5 million a year in operating costs just by switching to day cleaning.

The current contract was slated to expired Dec. 31, but has been extended to Jan. 8 while talks continue, he said. The next bargaining sessions are scheduled for Jan. 7 and 8.

“We’re not asking for the moon – but we’re not going backwards,” Morillo Alicea said.

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At the conclusion of the march, janitors held up signs to create a message of solidarity.