Last month, five Boston-area Blue Bottle Coffee locations announced their intention to unionize under the newly-formed Blue Bottle Independent Union (BBIU). After requesting the company voluntarily recognize the union, which they declined to do, pro-union workers staged a walk-out on April 8th and filed for an election with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).
That election took place last week, and we now knows the results. The BBIU won in a landslide victory by at vote of 38-4.
The BBIU has in the past described the buy-in from workers as “undeniable support” for the union, and these results bear that out. “We have once again demonstrated to management that Blue Bottle workers overwhelmingly are in favor of unionizing,” the group says in a press release announcing the results.
Among the reasons for the collective bargaining efforts, the BBIU states that “Blue Bottle does not pay us enough to meet our basic needs, does not allow us any input into cafe operations, and shows continuous disdain for us as workers.” They also allege that in the run up to the election, the company “led a campaign to union-bust by attempting to install cameras in cafes, distributing anti-union flyers, and sending letters to workers’ homes.”
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In a letter to employees, Blue Bottle states that once “the union is certified as the representative of Boston-area cafe team members, Blue Bottle will negotiate with the union in good faith as we move forward.”
“We hope that our obvious majority support will convince Blue Bottle that they need to pay their workers enough to live off of and allow them to have democratic ownership of their working conditions,” the BBIU states in the press release. “The bold, brash, and brave Blue Bottle baristas are proud of the steps they have taken to fight for and to win an equitable share of the value they produce and rightfully deserve.”
The next step for the union is to begin hammering out a contract with Blue Bottle, which can take anywhere from months to years, depending on their demands and the company’s willingness to compromise.
This story is developing…
Zac Cadwalader is the managing editor at Sprudge Media Network and a staff writer based in Dallas. Read more Zac Cadwalader on Sprudge.
