Chipotle has permanently closed a location in Maine due to staffing issues. However, labor organizers at the Augusta store claim the company was union busting.
Augusta, kept fighting. After Chipotle's announcement, the group filed an unfair labor practice complaint with the NLRB. An unfair labor practice, as defined by the labor board, is an "action by an employer or a union that violates the National Labor Relations Act."
Labor organizers claim Chipotle is retaliating for their efforts to organize workers and trying to send a message to other stores that might try similar tactics. "We’re calling this union busting 101," said Jeffrey Young, an attorney for Chipotle United, the group that was trying to unionize the Augusta store.Meanwhile, Chipotle Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Laurie Schalow blamed the closing on staffing issues.
Schalow said in a statement that the company has tried to keep the store open for training "while we went to extraordinary lengths to try to staff the restaurant including deploying two recruiting experts dedicated to this one restaurant." this remote restaurant with crew and continue to be plagued with excessive call-outs and lack of availability from existing staff," she continued.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Chipotle closes store in Maine, thwarting union effortsChipotle is closing a Maine store that had been leading efforts to unionize the chain. Employees at the Augusta, Maine, Chipotle filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board in June asking to hold a union election at the store.
Read more »
Maine company with big plans for using seaweed to soak up carbon draws scrutinyA Portland, Maine startup that aims to store millions of tons of planet-warming carbon deep in the ocean, is expanding to Iceland.
Read more »
Chipotle closes store in Maine, thwarting union effortsChipotle is closing a Maine store that had been leading efforts to unionize the chain. Employees at the Augusta, Maine, Chipotle filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board in June asking to hold a union election at the store.
Read more »
Safeway closures briefly impact Alaska storesMany Alaskan Safeway stores were closed briefly on Wednesday morning due to a system update.
Read more »
Starbucks CEO on store closings: 'There are going to be many more'Starbucks interim CEO Howard Schultz said more store closures are coming. Union organizers said the chain is targeting recently unionized stores.
Read more »
Maine company with big plans for using seaweed to soak up carbon draws scrutinyA Portland, Maine startup that aims to store millions of tons of planet-warming carbon deep in the ocean, is expanding to Iceland.
Read more »