Halifax baristas allege they were let go over attempts to unionize

Two Halifax baristas believe union activity is the reason that they were dismissed from their jobs at a coffee shop and they have filed a complaint with the Labour Board of Nova Scotia.

Elijah Williams and Shay Enxuga were let go last week from Just Us Coffee Roasters on Spring Garden Road. They allege it was because they tried to form a union.
The pair began talking about unionizing in December.

“We started talking about unionizing because there were a lot of small issues, like tips and breaks,” said Enxuga. “Isolated, they are pretty small, but together they culminated to a culture where we didn’t feel like our voices or opinions were being heard or valued.”

Enxuga and Williams began discussions with the SEIU Local 2 union in December and were ready to file for their union cards when the management began to question them.

“A few different workers stated being asked quetions like if they knew about staff meeting outside of work, talking about unions, grievances and labour boards,” Enxuga said.

Both workers say that they were told they were no longer a “good fit” for the company. Enxuga has worked for the coffee shop since July 2011, Williams since January 2012.

“The fact that they couldn’t give me any more reason other than the fact that i’m not a good fit leads me to believe that we were dismissed because we were attempting to form a union,” Enxuga said.

Both say that they had recently had performance reviews and did not receive any warning from their manager.

“I was completely shocked that they would take such a heavy handed union busting tactic,” Enxuga said.

The pair, along with the union, filed an unfair labour practice complaint against the company with the Labour Board of Nova Scotia.

The complaint states: “The Employer’s actions were calculated and imposed specifically to send a message to employees that they would be putting their employment in jeopardy if they chose to support SEIU Local 2.”

It’s an allegation that the company denies.

Debra Moore, general manager of Just Us, says that she was not made aware of the attempts to unionize until a couple days ago.

“This had never come up before,” she said.

She denies that the company isn’t open to the idea of unions, adding that she is a union supporter.

“There is no hesitation in my mind that we would love to sit down and talk about it,” Moore said.

And while she cannot comment on why Williams and Enxuga were let go due to employee confidentiality, she says that there were no relation between their dismissal and their attempts to unionize.

“It doesn’t make sense that there was any connection,” Moore said.

The complaint is requesting both workers be re-instated to their positions at the coffee shop and to receive compensation for all losses incurred as well as for the company to recognize the workers’ rights to form a union.

A union representative acting on behalf of Williams and Enxuga will meet with Moore on Thursday to discuss the situation and to determine whether the pair will get their jobs back.