A group of Jimmy John's employees in Minneapolis is seeking to unionize, hoping to bring about changes in scheduling practices and fairer wages.
The group, which calls itself the Jimmy John’s Workers Union, or JJWU, filed for a union election with the National Labor Relations Board this week, and is demanding that MikLin Enterprises, a nine-unit Jimmy John's franchisee, provide sick days, better scheduling and a “livable wage.”
Union member Max Specktor, a delivery driver who has worked for Jimmy John’s for a year and a half, told Nation’s Restaurant News that a petition sent to the NLRB had a majority of signatures from employees at MikLin’s restaurants. He added that MikLin has been informed of the filing but that management has not yet met with union negotiators.
“The petition proves we have a majority of support,” Specktor said. “If [MikLin officials] don’t sit down willingly, it’s a 42-day waiting period [before a unionization vote], and if the majority turns out in favor of a union, they’ll be forced to negotiate with us. But we want our demands met right away; we need better working conditions as soon as possible. So we’ll keep up the pressure.”
Franchisee MikLin, which is led by principals Mike and Rob Mulligan, said in a statement that it was proud of its employment record in Minneapolis and that it "took issue" with the union's claims.
"We value our relationship with our employees and offer competitive wages and good local jobs," MikLin said. "We are dedicated to providing a fair, equal and diverse workplace environment."
On Thursday, JJWU members along with supporters from the Industrial Workers of the World demonstrated outside Jimmy John's branches in Minneapolis, which were holding a "Dollar Sub Day" promotion. The workers handed out tip jars to customers and asked them to place the jars on the restaurants’ counters, which is against the chain's policies.
The group argued that asking workers to meet the increased volume from the $1 sub promotion while not providing them with lunch or allowing them to collect tips amounted to unsatisfactory working conditions.
“Respect is a core issue at Jimmy John’s and what we are fighting to regain,” union member David Boehnke said in a statement. “While tip jars and free sandwiches may not seem like a big deal, to come in, make $15 to $25 working all of lunch, make no tips, clean up and go home hungry — this is not something that connotes respect.”
Fellow union member Specktor said while the group's members are asking for fairer wages, they “don’t just want a raise.”
“There’s no raise schedule,” he said. “People have worked there for upward of four years at the federal minimum wage without a raise, and that’s not fair. Some people are getting them … since we announced the formation of the union, but they’re just a concession.”
Specktor said that, while MikLin officials have not met with union negotiators, they have sent union members a letter from the company and then another from the company’s attorneys.
The Industrial Workers of the World, or IWW, said on its website that it has helped the Jimmy John’s union stage demonstrations in front of the chain's locations in several other states. Champaign, Ill.-based Jimmy John’s has more than 1,000 sandwich shops in the United States.
The IWW also has helped organize restaurant industry workers in the past, as it has with Starbucks employees for the past six years. Last month, baristas and supporters shut down a Starbucks unit in Omaha, Neb., to protest what union members said were cutbacks to health care, staffing and benefits imposed by Starbucks due to the recession.
Contact Mark Brandau at [email protected].
