UNITE HERE Local 100, the union representing stadium foodservice and hospitality workers, has endorsed Michael Blake’s Congressional bid for NY-15, marking his first major labor endorsement in challenging incumbent Rep. Ritchie Torres.
In a statement posted to Instagram, union president José Maldonado called Blake “a disruptor” and “champion for working families.”
“He’s squarely focused on addressing a rigged economy at a time when many members in Congress are determined to preserve the status quo,” Maldonado said.
UNITE HERE Local 100’s political director, Dante de Blasio, is the son of former mayor Bill de Blasio, who is also endorsing Blake.
The union’s 17,000 New York and New Jersey members work at iconic venues such as Yankee Stadium, Citi Field, Madison Square Garden and Barclays Center, but those at UBS Arena on Long Island, home of the Islanders hockey team, have been without a contract since Oct. 31, 2025.
The UBS Arena press office did not respond to the Bronx Times’ request for comment in time for publication.
Blake showed his support for the union during an April 16 rally outside the National Hockey League headquarters in midtown Manhattan, where he and Local 100 members protested UBS Arena management’s plans for an upfront wage increase of 75 cents per hour. The union is demanding at least $2.
UNITE HERE Local 100’s fight for a higher wage increase is backed by several prominent elected officials, including Attorney General Letitia James, who said in a statement, “A 75-cent hourly raise from a company that generates billions in revenue is an insult.”
The union has also received statements of support from State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, New York City Comptroller Mark Levine, Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, among others.
City Council Member Lincoln Restler and former Comptroller Brad Lander, who is also running for Congress, both attended the rally in support of the union.
At the rally, Blake blasted the NHL for its role in the paltry wage increases at UBS Arena.
“NHL needs to stop playing games,” he said. “When corporate money and big money believe they’re more important than the people, we gotta set them straight.”
Blake, whose father was a member of 1199SEIU, vowed to keep supporting union power if elected to Congress.
He told the Bronx Times that workers cannot wait for pay raises, especially those who work on Long Island and have to commute from the city.
At a time when 1 in 4 New Yorkers can’t afford essentials, “Why are we still fighting for quality wages?” Blake said.
When people go to Yankee Stadium and other venues, “It’s UNITE HERE members that are there serving us and at the concessions. So they stand with us, we gotta stand with them.”
Gerard Cerda of the South Bronx, who has been a Madison Square Garden beer vendor for 33 years, told the Bronx Times that Blake is a true friend of labor.
He estimated there are at least 5,000 thousand Bronx members in the union and said that the incumbent, Ritchie Torres, “has ties with big business and powerful interests.”
Torres’ campaign sent the Bronx Times a statement that included a long list of endorsements that included carpenters’ and teachers’ unions and NYCHA tenant association presidents, along with prominent elected officials at the local and national levels, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Borough President Vanessa Gibson, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and several more.
“Ritchie is focused on delivering real results for working families in the Bronx. Everything else is noise,” the statement said.
But Cerda said his union is backing Blake as a truer representative of Bronx working people. Of Torres, he said, “You know what’s going on in Brussels, but you have no idea what’s going on in Grand Concourse.”
Reach Emily Swanson at eswanson@schnepsmedia.com or (646) 717-0015. For more coverage, subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram!
