The National Labor Relations Board has decided yesterday to certify IBEW Local 494 as the representative body for the Colectivo workers’ union, making it the largest coffee union in the country.
The initial vote by workers ended in a 99-99 tie last April, but the final vote came to 106-99 in favor of forming a union after the NLRB decided it would count some of the challenged ballots, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
In January, Colectivo filed for a review by the NLRB, arguing that union supporters and members of the voluntary organizing committee (“VOC”) illegally solicited votes, constituting grounds to overturn the election.
The board denied this request for a review. This was the final route available to Colectivo Coffee for appealing or overturning the election results, according to a statement from Dean Warsh, Business Manager at IBEW Local 494.
“The final decision has been made by the National Labor Relations Board in Washington, D.C. that the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers is officially and without question, the union representative of the workers of Colectivo Coffee,” Warsh said.
Warsh goes on to encourage Colectivo Coffee to bargain in good faith: “May your word be as strong as your coffee.”
The next step for the union is an official request for information to prepare for bargaining, which Political Director and Business Representative Ryan Neibauer says they are approaching in a hopeful way.
“The company has said publicly that if the election is certified, they will bargain in good faith,” Neibauer said. “Now that has happened, and we expect they will stand by those statements.”
In a written statement to the UWM Post, Colectivo said they will begin to prepare to bargain in good faith.
