Blank Street Coffee Workers Vote to Join UFCW Local 1500

On February 14, an NLRB election count for the first neighborhood umbrella group of Blank Street Coffee locations was held, with workers in West Brooklyn voting overwhelmingly to join UFWC Local 1500. The stores covered by the election include 277 Bedford Ave, 776 Lorimer St, 225 Wythe Ave, 147 Montague St, 2 Metrotech Center, and 178 Court St. Two more elections are ongoing (Park Slope and Chelsea/West Village) and two more neighborhoods are waiting to receive their ballots.

The 34 workers, who are employed as Baristas, Service Pros, and Shift Leads (Baristas), joined the union family because they were concerned about safety issues, maintenance issues, scheduling, lack of PTO, lack of scheduled raises, and the lack of a fair grievance process.

“I moved to unionize my neighborhood so that my job could be the best version of itself it could be. UFCW Local 1500 helps me feel more optimistic about my financial and mental stability as a Blank Street employee going forward," said barista Sequoya Waring. Read background on Blank Street workers' efforts to organize in The Huffington Post!