Baristas Join UFCW Local 135 to Bargain for Better Wages and Working Conditions
San Diego, CA – Workers at Better Buzz Coffee’s Hillcrest location have achieved an important victory in their pursuit of better wages, fair treatment and improved working conditions. In a decisive election held by the National Labor Relations Board on Friday, May 17, the baristas, trainers, and shift supervisors voted overwhelmingly to join the United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 135.
This worker victory marks the culmination of a determined effort by the employees, who organized under the name Better Buzz United. The workers cited concerns about wages, benefits, scheduling, and overall workplace safety as primary reasons for seeking union representation.
“I’m extremely grateful to all of my coworkers for showing up and showing out in support of granting workers a voice. This is another step towards a bright future of worker empowerment!” – barista Jackson Ducksworth.
“This has been a hard fight but I’m so proud of our coworkers for showing up for what they believe in. Life’s better unionized!” – barista Katy Waldman
“I’m very excited for this new era of cooperation between management and employees at Better Buzz. This is going to be a win-win for both groups.” – barista Ben Leighton
The election win comes as Better Buzz Coffee continues to expand rapidly across southern California, Arizona, and soon Nevada. Despite this growth, workers have voiced concerns that the benefits of expansion have not been equitably shared.
UFCW Local 135 is dedicated to supporting the workers of Better Buzz Hillcrest and is actively organizing other Better Buzz locations across San Diego County. This victory at the Hillcrest location is only the beginning of a broader movement to improve conditions for all employees within the company.
“Never underestimate the power a group of workers wield when they fight for what they deserve,” said UFCW Local 135 Lead Organizer Andres Pinzon. “This is a win not only for them but for baristas and workers everywhere. I’m proud of the Hillcrest team for leading the way!”
For more information about the Better Buzz United organizing campaign or to schedule an interview with the newly unionized baristas or union organizers, please contact UFCW Local 135 Lead Organizer Andres Pinzón at 619.246.4431.
I hope they didn’t listen to the hype from their Union Rep. When they get jumped up to $20 pr. hr., the customers stop coming, or at the least slow way down because they can no longer afford it. Their hours get cut, so now they’re a seasonal or temporary or part time worker =No benefits and/or less hours. Worst case scenario, the business will close and they have NO job and because they’re a part time worker no unemployment either. Unless the State rules have changed since I did payroll. It seems other fast food workers thought they were going to get what they wanted, and came to understand they drank the Kool-aid, and they got screwed. AND the union reps get screwed too, because part timers don’t have benefits, so don’t pay union dues. Welcome to the real world when you don’t know enough about the issue to know what questions to ask before you leap.
For a commodity job. GLTY but cost is a major factor why I don’t go to coffee establishments. Too easy to make, just watch the Amazon commercial, lol.
That’s pretty negative, ol Pats. Unions are very important and fast-food and coffee workers get constantly screwed wo/ a union. So, ‘welcome to your own world’ — one of denial of the benefits to the role of unions in this country, you know, the people who brought us the 40-hour work week, workers comp and countless other things you and other take for granted.
Right on Frank. It seems it’s too often I myself have to educate people on the what unions have done for everyone. Even if you aren’t union, you can thank a union for the wage you earn.
Or government gruesome Newsome.
Unions have their place and space. Not a one deal fits all.
I’ll let the broke baristas and their broke customers fight this one out.
I spent 9 cents on my coffee this morning, and every morning, and I didn’t have to sit in a line of idling cars to get it. Who are these people with a $200/month coffee budget?
I know, right? Every time I go by a starbucks or other place and see the line of cars waiting for a cup of coffee (expensive at that), I think to myself, ‘why don’t these people make coffee at home?’
Well those folks who just voted for a union are sure short sighted. If you think a union is going to make your job easier or better, you’ve got a thing coming. Now you’ll be micromanaged against the terms of the contract. There won’t be any more flexibility, no more favors, no more helping each other. You’ll all be judged against standard. The good people will leave and the turds will find refuge in rules.
If you didn’t like where you were working, why didn’t you just move on? Now your life is going to be hell.
Funny, the union I work for is nothing like you describe. Nor the one before that. Although, I did spend a week in a General Motors plant one day trying to deliver something. Seems to me, if the owner(s) treated their workers decently, the workers wouldn’t want to unionize for better wages and/or better treatment.
There’s great refuge in unions where a worker and the company need to deliver on a product/ contract and the workforce isn’t easily automated. Who’s next, the gardener and hair salon? That’s where it’s over the top. Expecting top line compensation for marginal jobs with little to no training or experience. The $8 latte is about to rival the $8 combo, both of which I won’t be buying.
There currently is no flexibility, they’re already being micromanaged, there’s no favors, etc. Workers have a right under the NLRA to join together to bargain collectively. And they are exercising that fundamental American right. Conditions can only get better there, they can’t get much worse.
One thing unionization may do is speed up the transition to jobs that can be performed via Artificial Intelligence. Hope they have some protection against that in their contract. I looked at the “Better Buzz” website after reading this article and the comments, and it looks oh so trendy. Perhaps they will try to expand into OB. I can imagine the reaction.
/s/ Chris Kennedy
That’s bullpucky CK
All these anti-union comments are interesting … short-sighted, but interesting, a-historical, but interesting, reflecting management and corporate viewpoints, but interesting, dis-compassionate but interesting ….
My other comments haven’t passed muster yet but, your insight, Frank, is a little headstrong. Years ago as a union carpenter, went to work for a contractor. Two weeks in, I was laid off. Over a decade of experience then. To my face, they said, they were bringing other people in from other jobs and it was a mistake to hire me. The buddy system. On my lay off paper, they said substandard work. I went to my union to dispute, and got nothing. While unions are a positive, they are political, to get work from government or private, but still side with the contractors providing the work. It’s not what you think it is.
Dude, am not saying all unions are good or that they’re perfect. I’ve been a member of half a dozen unions over the years, plus worked for a union as a rep for 2. In fact, there are some local unions and leaders that are on our shit list. We’re talking in general here and then Barrio Brent brought in the specifics.
I’ve had positive and negative experiences with unions. My first, I worked at Convair and was a member of the Machinists and my union rep caught an error (intentional?) on the part of managmement in that they weren’t paying me the correct amount of pay for the position and my union rep got it changed. Direct benefit: more money.
The negative experience was out in Colorado and was a member of the Labors union, working in 100 degree temps in the summer, and the union rep threatened me with losing the job if I didn’t get it together a make a payment to the union – dues they call it. It was my second week on the job. Also when I was fired for having a beard – nothing, plus fired again for refusing to work overtime in the snow and nothing. But then again I didn’t press the union on either of these incidents, but there weren’t union reps on the job I could go to, either.
Always good to have the dialogue and express, cheers.
We gotta have a beer some day with the other Chris and Geoff and KH and ….
Not short sighted, rather differently sighted.
I’m not management nor corporate, but I know the worth of my labor and I know my skills. My boss can fire me anytime and I can quit anytime I want. I understand that. Because I have worked hard at my craft, my skills are portable and in demand.
I’d never work as a slave for the union, yep, the union. When you’re union you really work for the union boss. Screw up and he/she will conspire with the business to fire you. No thanks.
I don’t want to be judged against the average worker. I don’t want to be penalized for working longer and harder and trying to get ahead. If you’re union, you’ll get the stink eye and a talking to for working harder than your coworker. BTDT.
But if you like your union, good for you, it’s just not for me. I’ll make my own deals with the boss man or work for myself. Done that, too. And if I don’t like where I work, I won’t complain and naively think that things will change, I’ll up and find a better non-union job.
The workers at Better Buzz get minimum wage with no benefits whatsoever, no paid time off, no holiday pay, no regular shifts, etc, and management treats them like shit. The workers can only go up from there. The company is rapidly expanding with almost 20 locations in San Diego County. Better Buzz can afford to treat their workers better. Yet they don’t, and now they have to negotiate with the union.
Brent, if it’s such a craphole why the hell is anybody working there in the first place??
If you’re poorly treated why not move on? To believe that unionization is magically going to make for better working conditions for everyone is the height of ignorance. This move is only going to benefit the few.
Unionization is not a zero sum game. Unionization cost tons of money, some people are going to lose their jobs, some people are not going to like the rules they’ll have to live under. Most will look back fondly at their pre-union days.
Wow, shocking that a bunch of housing and planning reactionaries would ALSO be against workers! Quite the progressive bunch here.
And to whom are you referring to, OB Ted?
This website is pretty wild. I think their version of progressivism is pretty outdated and it shows a lot on here
What exactly are you referring to? There’s dialogues going on, so can you be more specific? And what’s your version of progressivism?
So why are the now unionized workers, promised $20 pr. hr. complaining because they now have no benefits, because they got reduced hours, (no benefits there. they’re not part timers), or their place of employment closed up. How did that benefit them?