February 29, 2024
Michaela Althouse/PhillyVoice
Local 80 workers showed support for Ultimo Coffee employees as its Rittenhouse (above) and Newbold locations closed today after workers went on strike.
UPDATE (2:38 p.m. 2/29/24): Ultimo owners and employees reached an agreement Thursday afternoon, ending a one-day strike for workers at two of the coffee shop's locations. The parties agreed on a $14 per hour base wage and eliminating a noncompete clause for workers. Employees will be withdrawing a complaint made with the National Labor Relations Board, and Ultimo's Rittenhouse and Newbold locations will reopen Friday.
Glaive Perry, a barista at Ultimo, said workers were looking forward to a more collaborative relationship with management and setting an example for other coffee shop workers in the area.
"This demonstrates, as the wins at Elixir and ReAnimator did, that coffee shop unions are not going anywhere," Perry said. "They're here to stay and this is the future of the industry."
The original story is below:
Ultimo Coffee employees began striking this morning after negotiations continued with owners Elizabeth and Aaron Ultimo.
Employees at two of the company's four locations authorized Thursday's strike earlier this month and began raising money for a strike fund last week. The two parties had been in negotiations for a year for a union contract with Local 80, which represents workers at other local coffee shops including Elixr Coffee, Vibrant Coffee and ReAnimator Coffee.
Aaron Ultimo said the parties agreed to reconvene today and that the union has denied multiple requests to have a federal mediator present. According to him, the union agreed not to strike last night.
"We want to make it clear that at our very long meeting yesterday, we were ready to settle a contract with the Union and our employees," Ultimo wrote in an email. "We agreed to far more than what the Union already agreed to in their other two settled contracts."
Ultimo workers, on the other hand, said that they made no promises about holding off on a strike or ending a boycott that began a week ago. At the time of publication, workers and the Ultimos were in the midst of a negotiation session.
Ultimo said the owners agreed to a 15% starting wage increase, a 5-9% annual raise, a guaranteed minimum of $21.75 per hour, a "generous" health insurance subsidy, better PTO accrual rates, a labor management committee and the ability to work at other coffee shops.
Ultimo workers, on the other hand, say the story is a little different. After a week of asking customers to boycott the establishment, employees at the Newbold and Rittenhouse locations began striking at 7 a.m. until further notice. Ultimo barista Glaive Perry said that negotiations had broken down over a raise for current employees.
A post from Philly Workers United also said the union filed charges with the National Labor Relations Board regarding "Aaron and Elizabeth's unilateral changes made to the workplace during the boycott."
"Nobody wants to strike," said a ReAnimator employee who works with Local 80 and came out to support Ultimo workers. "It's kind of the last ditch effort to get what you think is fair. So the sooner the Ultimos settle, the sooner we can all get back to work and serve the community."
Teamsters Local 623, the union representing warehouse workers, UPS package delivery drivers and Greyhound ticket and baggage agents, said this morning that it would not make deliveries to the coffee shop in solidarity with the union.
Ultimo Coffee workers have increased their strike relief fund from a goal of $7,500 to $15,000. Employees have raised over $10,000 so far.
"We're at a really cool point in the labor movement where a lot of shops in Philly have contracts now, and I hope it inspires other workforces to unionize and come together and try to live, actually make a living out here," the ReAnimator employee added.
