Colectivo wants labor board to review results of union vote
Colectivo Coffee Roasters is asking the National Labor Relations Board to review the results of the vote by workers to unionize that was decided by the regional director last year.
The 106-99 vote in favor of forming a union by Colectivo Coffee workers was announced in August. The initial count of votes in April of last year ended in a 99-99 tie. The board opened some challenged ballots for the final tally.
Colectivo argues in its filing with the national board that improper ballot solicitation occurred during the vote.
Colectivo does not agree with the ruling that there was no unlawful ballot solicitation and says that it departs from precedent. Colectivo cites a ballot that was left at the cafe on Humboldt Avenue that could have been tampered. It also mentions how the union effort solicited voters to bring their ballots to the Logan Square cafe to go to the post office together.
The coffee company said that the “regional director's determination that no improper ballot solicitation occurred in this case is clearly erroneous on the record and prejudicially affects Colectivo's rights.”
Colectivo did not respond to questions.
Workers at Colectivo started a campaign in 2020 to form a union at the coffee roastery and cafe. The union would be represented by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 494.
“Colectivo Coffee Roasters decision to now file with the NLRB in Washington D.C and request an additional review of the workers fairly decided union election result is just another delay and obstructive tactic to slow down and stop the will of their workers to form a union”, said IBEW Local 494 Business Manager Dean Warsh.
Colectivo has around 500 employees at its cafes, production and corporate staff. It operates a roasting facility in Riverwest and cafes in Milwaukee, Madison and Chicago areas. The majority of Colectivo employees who work in the cafes, production, warehouse, roasting and bakery areas will be represented by the union.
“We at IBEW Local 494 continue to call on the ownership and management to stop stalling and join us and the workers at the bargaining table to negotiate a fair and equitable contract,” Warsh said in a statement.
Sarah Hauer can be reached at shauer@journalsentinel.com or on Instagram @HauerSarah and Twitter @SarahHauer. Subscribe to her weekly newsletter Be MKE at jsonline.com/ bemke.