Colectivo union drive vote begins with tie
A vote by Colectivo Coffee workers on whether to have union representation has initially ended in a tie — with some ballots to undergo additional reviews.
With over 300 ballots provided to Colectivo hourly employees in the Milwaukee, Madison and Chicago areas, the initial vote resulted in a 99-99 deadlock, said John Zapfel, communications director for International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 494.
IBEW Local 494 would be the collective bargaining agent for those workers if the National Labor Relations Board rules that the union has obtained a majority of their votes.
Challenges are being filed by both the union and the company on 16 ballots, Zapfel said Tuesday.
Once decisions about these ballots have been made, the NLRB will open the ballots at a later date to tabulate results, according to the union.
“It is our understanding the NLRB will review a number of challenged ballots in the coming weeks,” Colectivo said in a statement.
In a statement, Local 494 Business Manager Dean Warsh said the organizing drive “marks a new chapter in the workers’ desire for better rights and protections at their worksites.”
Warsh said Colectivo workers “have taken a bold and necessary step toward ensuring that every employee has fair treatment and dignity in their work.”
“Further, they have strengthened the bonds and created new friendships with workers at Colectivo worksites across state lines — developing a shared understanding and commitment to each other’s well-being,” he said.
Colectivo operates a roasting facility at 2999 N. Humboldt Blvd., in the Riverwest neighborhood; a wholesale bakery at 2301 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., in Bay View, and 20 cafes in the Milwaukee, Madison and Chicago areas.