Mayor Tom Barrett released the following statement on workers organizing at Colectivo:
“I support workers who want to organize and be given rights to bargain for safer and better working conditions. I encourage employers to communicate and engage employees in their workplace and realize the value of that collaboration.”
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
More about the Union Effort at Colectivo
- NLRB Upholds Colectivo Union Election - Graham Kilmer - Mar 25th, 2022
- IBEW Local 494 Celebrates the Final Decision of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on the Colectivo Coffee Workers Successful Unionization Campaign Effort - International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 494 - Mar 25th, 2022
- Union Blasts Colectivo For Stalling Negotiations - Graham Kilmer - Jan 6th, 2022
- Union Bid At Colectivo Still On Hold - Erik Gunn - Dec 13th, 2021
- County Board of Supervisors Congratulate Colectivo Workers on Successful Union Election - Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors - Aug 27th, 2021
- Supervisor Czarnezki Calls on Colectivo Ownership to Bargain with Employees in Good Faith - Sup. Joe Czarnezki - Aug 27th, 2021
- Congratulations Colectivo workers - Milwaukee Common Council - Aug 25th, 2021
- Colectivo Workers Win Union Election - Graham Kilmer - Aug 23rd, 2021
- Colectivo Union Election Is a Tie Vote - Graham Kilmer - Apr 6th, 2021
- Colectivo Union Election Finishes - Graham Kilmer - Mar 31st, 2021
Read more about Union Effort at Colectivo here
Thank you Mayor Barrett for your leadership in supporting low wage working Milwaukeeans’ efforts to unionize at Colectivo! It’s disappointing that the three owners of this self-described “progressive organization” are opposing this effort. By the way, you don’t get to describe yourself as “progressive” when you pay your employees low wages.
One of the things that the Pandemic has made us realize is how dependent many of us are on Milwaukee’s vast low wage workforce. This low wage economy is a feature of the old normal that we cannot go back to. Among other changes, it means that we’ll have to pay a bit more for a cup of coffee and the owners of Colectivo will have to reduce their profits a bit.
To get a sense of what a living wage in Milwaukee County looks like, check out MIT’s Living Wage Calculator https://livingwage.mit.edu/counties/55079