The Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem union became the latest New York City-area legal aid union to set a strike deadline this week, announcing Monday that its over 230 members will walk off the job if they don't reach a deal with their managers by Friday at 8 a.m.

Senior staff attorney Jahnavi Bhaskar told Law360 on Monday that the union remains at odds with its managers over the healthcare coverage it secured at no cost to employees when it ratified its last contract in 2024.

"Unfortunately, [managers] have proposed rollbacks on the current healthcare benefits that exist in our contract, which include postretirement healthcare benefits for retirees," she said. "These are people who have given their entire career in service to NDS and to NDS clients. So in our current contract, if you've been an employee of the Neighborhood Defender Service for 20 years, NDS will cover the cost of postretirement healthcare benefits, and our management is refusing to continue offering these benefits to our retirees. And so this is one area where we're facing rollbacks in our healthcare coverage, and we still do not have the guarantee of continued no-cost healthcare throughout the term of the contract, which is one of the main things we've been fighting for."

The union members also said their managers have proposed 1% annual cost of living adjustments over the three-year contract term, arguing that they are "essentially offering wage cuts to its workers over time due to rising inflation."

NDS did not immediately respond to Law360's request for comment.

NDS Harlem represents low-income residents of Harlem and the Bronx. The NDS union, or NDSU, is one of five members of the Association of Legal Advocates and Attorneys, a United Automobile Workers affiliate that represents over 3,500 legal services workers in the NYC metro area.

One of them — the Brooklyn Defender Services — went on strike Thursday. The Bronx Defenders union has also authorized a strike, but it has yet to set a deadline. The Center for Family Representation and Catholic Migration Services are also on an expired contract.

NDSU authorized a strike July 9, with 97% of participating members voting to authorize a strike, and 94% of members participating in the vote. It is scheduled to return to the bargaining table Tuesday.

--Editing by Rich Mills.