Strike deadline postponed.

As Real Estate Weekly went to press, a strike deadline for 28,000 doormen, janitors and building superintendents has been pushed back 48 hours to accommodate Easter, Passover and a new negotiating schedule.

Labor and management agreed last week, just before the start of Passover, to extend their current contract to midnight April 22. Otherwise, the contract would have expired at midnight on Easter Sunday and a strike could have started a minute later.

"In a period of tension both domestically and 'abroad, we thought it appropriate for city residents to have the comfort of the religious holidays without other concerns," said Mike Fishman, president of Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union.

The Realty Advisory Board, representing building owners, said the extension "will help to insure that the residents of affected buildings will be able to enjoy the Passover and Easter holidays." About 1 million residents in 3,000 rental buildings, co-ops and condos, mostly in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, would be affected by a strike.

Mike Fishman, president of Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union, said the union's 28,000 members - which include doormen, superintendents, handymen, concierges and porters in all boroughs but the Bronx - need pay increases that keep pace with the 3% inflation rate. He said doormen now earn $34,300, while porters earn $27,000. The Realty Advisory Board on Labor Relations, which represents 3,000 building owners and managers, is offering no wage increases for the first year and lump-sum. bonuses of $500 for the second and third years. The bonuses apply across the board.

At a rally last week, Fishman told workers they have been doing more to keep people safe since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. James Berg, president of the Realty Advisory Board, said that "there is a significant chasm between the two sides." Berg added that owners are readying themselves for a strike that would affect services for about 1 million city residents. The board has sent a copy of its booklet, "Residential Building Preparedness Information," to building owners, which advises owners on how to keep residents' informed about the negotiations. The booklet also notifies residents on how to put out their garbage and find volunteers in case of emergency. The last strike occurred in 1991 and lasted 12 days.