By a vote of 21 to 1 workers at Starbucks Fitchburg voted down union representation

By a vote of 21 to 1 workers at Starbucks Fitchburg voted down union representation by the United Food and Commercial Workers or UFCW.

The UFCW also withdrew petitions for elections at two Madison locations. Fierce company opposition is the main reason that union representation elections are lost as UFCW local 1473 President Jake Reilly pointed out in the Isthmus

QUOTE” It is not surprising given the viscous anti-union program that these workers were subjected to and the unfair and illegal termination of our active organizing committee at a neighboring store”

The union leader said he will also exhaust all legal remedies.
However the workers at the Starbucks store on Main Street had just voted fifteen to one to bring in the union. Nationwide according to the Isthmus workers at 231 Starbucks stores have had union representation elections with eighty-one percent voting to unionize.
So while Fitchburg loss is disappointing one can also look at the many wins to see how workers at those stores were able to bring in the union. In the Madison case at least, the workers at the Main Street Starbucks worked closely with members of the community to organize public displays of support. These displays of support showed workers in the store that they were not alone and isolated. Similar displays of support helped workers win at the Collectivo company earlier in the year.

Reporting Courtesy of Frank Emspak

Image Courtesy of Piutus on Flickr