A surprise announcement Tuesday by one the four largest commercial building property management companies during a Stand For Security Rally in downtown Los Angeles is being heralded by labor officials and local clergy as a key break through in a three-year-old campaign to unionize security guards.

The announcement was made by Maguire Properties spokesperson Peggy Moretti to members of the Stand for Security coalition outside the Wells Fargo Tower, the company headquarters.

Company spokesperson Peggy Moretti told the crowd of some 100 people gathered that Maguire encourages the security guards to organize with whatever union they choose.

Maguire’s opposition to the estimated 5,000 to 15,000 being organized by SEIU Local 1877 has been a major sticking point in the effort to get workers union representation in Los Angeles.

“I’ve been with the union 19 years, most of it in Los Angeles, and this is the first time I’ve ever seen a property owner come down and address a rally in front of their building,” said Jono Shaffer, director of security organization for SEIU International. “I think unquestionably, the presence of the clergy and community leadership embracing the campaign created a feeling at Maguire that they needed to do something.”

Repeated calls to Maguire Properties seeking comments were not returned.

According to Shaffer, the effort to change Maguire’s stance on this major point has been going for about a year, and has involved negotiations between the two sides as late as Monday.

This announcement by Maguire now allows the Stand for Security Coalition to turn its attention to the broader real estate industry. “In some ways they’ve been hiding behind Maguire’s shadow,” asserted Shaffer. “These are words we’ve been waiting to hear for a long time on this project.”

According to Shaffer, Maguire is by far the largest property owner in the downtown area.

Moretti’s announcement followed a meeting with Rev. Lewis Logan of Bethel A.M.E. and a group of other clergy members including Rev. Charles Bake Jr., Rev. Aubrey Thornton and Attorney William Lafferty.

“Peggy Moretti brought up the point that Maguire Properties has always been pro-union and wanted to allow workers to unionize. Their concern was that they didn’t want one local union to serve two functions within one building; they didn’t want them to have the ability to unionize both their security officers as well as the janitors,” explained Rev. Logan, who was also surprised by the announcement.

“I asked her if she would repeat her statement in the meeting to the group downstairs,” and she did, added Rev. Logan.

The next step said the union rep Shaffer is two fold. “The next critical step is to get the principal contractors, the vast majority of whom are unionized with SEIU in other cities around America, to enter into an agreement with the union so that workers can win representation and bargain for a contract,” said Shaffer. At the same time, he added that they will approach the other property owners around the city seeking their agreement as well.

Among the key issues that need to be addressed, said Shaffer, is the pay for security guards, about two-thirds of whom are African American. In Los Angeles, the average wage is about $8.44 per hour, and they are usually the lowest paid people in the building, added Local 1877 official Terrance Long. In comparison, wages for the same positions average $12 in Chicago, $11 in San Francisco and $10 in Minneapolis.

Shaffer said other issues that must be addressed include benefits, improved training and equal opportunity and access to all positions.