Paul Gores

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

A group of employees from Milwaukee’s Stone Creek Coffee wants to form a labor union, an effort that could have ramifications for other coffee businesses if it’s successful.

Teamsters Local 344 on Tuesday filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board asking for an election to form a bargaining unit for about 130 employees, Bill Carroll, secretary-treasurer of the local, said Wednesday.

The bargaining unit would include baristas, roasters, production workers, delivery drivers, bakers and kitchen staff, said employee Maria Brondino, a Stone Creek barista who is the recording secretary for the organizing committee.

Brondino said employees at Stone Creek Coffee have a number of work-related issues they hope a union would help resolve, including a better starting wage.

“First and foremost is pay,” Brondino said. “We really know we deserve equal pay for the work that we’re doing, and $8 an hour is not a living wage, and we would like a living wage.”

Among other issues Brondino said prompted an interest in organizing a union:

Management not scheduling full-time workers with enough hours, putting their benefits in jeopardy

Too much time working with no breaks

Employees having to find a replacement to work their shift if they are sick. The union organizers would like to add an on-call barista as a position to cover last-minute illnesses or other emergency absences.

The company called staff meetings, or “workshops,” on Tuesday and Wednesday to talk with employees about what it would mean if Stone Creek workers unionize, said Stone Creek founder Eric Resch.

“At the workshops, we’ve spent a lot of time allowing people to share their concerns, and I’m thankful that people spoke up. It’s unfortunate that it’s in this manner,” Resch said.

Resch said the $8-an-hour starting wage doesn’t tell the whole story because baristas also receive tips. He said baristas make between $4 and $5 an hour in tips, putting total compensation for starting baristas at $12 to $13 per hour.

Resch said the company studies industry wages and that compensation for all positions “should be at the middle of pay ranges.”

Addressing the scheduling issue for full-time employees, Resch said hours can go up or down depending on the season, but Stone Creek, because it has 12 Wisconsin locations, allows workers to pick up shifts at other cafes.

“When we make a commitment to an employee, we do our very best to keep that commitment,” he said.

Workday breaks are governed by labor laws and are spelled out in an employee handbook, Resch said.

“We do ask our baristas to work with their peers to try to help cover their shift. But of course if they’re sick and they can’t have their shift covered, the team will fill it in and the person should stay home if they’re sick,” Resch said.

Brondino said the vote on whether to form a union should take place within the next few weeks.

Carroll said Local 344 was approached by some Stone Creek workers several months ago.

“They had some issues that their employer was not being responsive to and they were getting frustrated and they looked to us for assistance,” said Carroll, who described Local 344 as a “sales and service local union.”

Asked whether success at Stone Creek might lead to a broader unionization effort of Milwaukee area coffee workers, Carroll said: “If that happens, that would be fantastic. We’d love to work with those workers. Most of this is predicated on how receptive their employer is to the needs of the workers. And if they don’t feel like their voice is being heard, we’re more than happy to be their voice for them.”

"We’re really hoping that other companies in Milwaukee will take note of how their employees are being treated as well," Brondino said.

Resch said Stone Creek, which has about 200 employees in all, wants to make sure workers understand what happens when a union is formed.

“The reason we did the workshops was to arrive — just as we do in other formats here at Stone Creek — at the education needed for smart, intelligent people to make choices about their future,” he said.

Paul Gores can be reached at (414) 224-2392. Follow him on Twitter @pgores