Colectivo Coffee Workers Ratify First Contract With Management

MILWAUKEE, WI — After a unionization campaign lasting years, workers at Wisconsin-based Colectivo Coffee have bargained for and ratified their first contract with management, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers announced Wednesday in a news release.

Workers at the shop's locations across Milwaukee, Madison and Chicago voted 95 percent in favor of the first contract, the union said. The news comes after a ballot recount in 2021 paved the way toward unionization at the coffee chain by a slim margin. The store's workers in Wisconsin are represented by IBEW Local 494, while workers in Illinois are affiliated with IBEW Local 1220.

The contract covers around 600 employees, IBEW organizer Ryan Neibauer told The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

See also: Colectivo Coffee Workers Can Unionize After Ballot Recount

The campaign to unionize the Milwaukee-based chain started in mid-2020. When the chain voted in favor of unionizing, organizers said it was the largest unionized chain of its kind in the country.

“This contract ratification is the culmination of the efforts of hundreds of workers over the past three years," said Hillary Laskonis, an original member of the organizing committee, in a news release. "We could not have made it to this point without their bravery, the tireless work of the folks at the IBEW, as well as the vocal support of thousands of customers and members of the community. I am beside myself with gratitude for all of them this week. I look forward to what the future holds for those of us behind the counter and throughout Colectivo Coffee."

When the NLRB recount happened, officials at the craft coffee chain said they were "disappointed." In a public statement posted online, management asserted the votes that allowed the union came from people who later resigned. The company still said it would "respect the rules and bargain in good faith."

Zacary Heren, a Colectivo employee in the Chicago area, said the contract ratification is "proof that hard work and solidarity in the workplace pays off."

Colectivo has about 20 locations around Milwaukee, Shorewood, Wauwatosa, Madison, Chicago and beyond.

See also: Oak Creek Starbucks Workers Make Bid For First Union In Wisconsin