As you know, Anheuser-Busch has not had a very good year. And now, things are just getting worse.
This comes as a whopping one-fourth of the beer producer’s workforce is preparing to go on strike, effectively shutting down production.
As Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien said in a statement on Saturday, a vote has been made, and a whopping 99 percent of the 5,000 Teamsters working at Anheuser-Busch have agreed that they will strike if a new contract is not reached soon.
“If Anheuser-Busch’s executives can’t get their act together to negotiate an agreement that respects workers, we will see them out on the streets.”
On Saturday, Anheuser-Busch Teamsters nationwide voted by a resounding 99 percent to authorize a strike if the beer giant fails to deliver on a fair agreement. Teamsters Brewery, Bakery, and Soft Drink Conference Director Jeff Padellaro joined Local 469 members in Newark, N.J. on… pic.twitter.com/N3jbsyvZkf
— Teamsters (@Teamsters) December 18, 2023
As the Teamsters claim, they have been demanding more job security, specifically in the form of higher wages and better health care and retirement benefits, for a while now. But the company hasn’t done much on either front. They did finally agree to “end tiered health care and restore retiree health benefits last month,” the union said.
But since then, negotiations have all but stopped.
“Anheuser-Busch has delayed negotiations on important job security issues since mid-November, despite repeated requests by the union.”
And now, time is running out.
According to the union, their contract with the once respected beer company expired at the end of February, meaning a new contract must be put in place for the union to supply Anheuser-Busch with workers, which, as I mentioned before, make up a whopping one-quarter of their workforce.
Naturally, Teamsters are getting worried and upset.
A staggering 99% of the 5,000 @Teamsters at twelve Anheuser-Busch breweries have voted to authorize a strike.
If the two parties don’t agree on a new contract raising wages, protecting jobs and securing benefits in 2024, the workers could walk out and shut down production.
— More Perfect Union (@MorePerfectUS) December 18, 2023
And, so far, no new contract negotiations have been scheduled, according to the union.
Now, as you know, the issue with the union isn’t the beverage giant’s only problem. They are still reeling from major setbacks and sales declines since they decided to partner with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney back in April.
While the two incidents aren’t directly related, the first has definitely led to many reasons why Anheuser-Busch might not be so willing to pay workers more or add benefits. As it is, they can barely afford to do business as usual, forcing them to sell off a number of brands and lay off thousands of non-unionized workers.
Let’s just say their year isn’t getting any better. And 2024 isn’t looking too great, either.
