The National Labor Relations Board has issued a complaint against the New York restaurant group led by celebrity chef Ignacio Mattos, saying it engaged in illegal practices to prevent workers from forming a union at Lodi’s Rockefeller Center.
The 24 complaints, some of which involve Mr. Mattos himself, include monitoring employee communications, telling employees the restaurant would close if a union formed and warning undocumented workers that their immigration status would be affected if they unionized.
The alleged practices are fairly common anti-union tactics. What stands out in the case, however, is the new tool at the NLRB’s disposal: its recent decision that lowers the bar for a union to win recognition.
The decision, known as Cemex decision for the building materials company first used last August, allows the NLRB to order a company to recognize and bargain with a union — even when workers have voted against a union, as they did last year in Lodi — if management council the general counsel can prove to an administrative law judge that the administration used illegal union busting methods that influenced the outcome of the election.
In April, the district director of the board’s Manhattan office, John Doyle, issued the complaint, which seeks an injunction against Cemex. Administrative law judges have imposed Cemex orders against three companies, but this is the first case involving a restaurant. If a judge rules that Mattos Hospitality acted illegally, the company would have to negotiate with workers at Lodi — which would become one of the few independent restaurants in New York with a union.
The bargaining unit would be small, at least at first — about 50 workers in Lodi, out of 228 employees at Mattos Hospitality’s three restaurants. And a significant percentage of unions never win a contract, said Jeffrey Hirsch, a professor at the University of North Carolina who specializes in labor and employment law.
But the precedent of a Cemex order against a restaurant, he said, could motivate other food service workers to unionize. “With Cemex, you go straight into negotiations, and that’s a big change,” Mr. Hirsch said.
The NLRB said several newly formed unions are seeking Cemex rulings after the August decision, and that its general counsel is currently seeking Cemex orders in about a dozen cases nationwide.
Mattos Hospitality said it could not comment on the allegations while the case is active. But he pointed to a statement he issued before the union vote that said: “We do our best to ensure that every team member is treated with dignity and respect and that every employee has a voice.”
“The choice of whether the team wishes to be represented by a union has always been up to them and we are committed to preserving their right to make an informed decision. The Lodi group voted not to unionize in a free and fair election administered by the NLRB.” (The vote was 25 to 21 against the union.)
An innovative chef from Uruguay, Mr. Mattos first made his mark in 2013 by opening Estela, where guests were the Obamas. He is regularly profiled in the media, and in April was named one of 100 Most Culturally Influential People in the country by Cultured Magazine.
Lodi, an Italian cafe, was one of the first restaurants to open as part of the recent high-profile overhaul of Rockefeller Center Plaza. (The federal case against Lodi does not involve Estela or Mr. Mattos’ third restaurant, Altro Paradiso.)
Local union organizing movements are very much in the news, as workers in large corporate outposts want Starbucks and Amazon they have won long battles. However, only 3.6 percent of food service workers in the United States are unionized, according to a Report 2023 from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, compared to 10 percent of all workers. This is partly because the restaurant business has high turnover and the number of workers in independent restaurants is often too small to take on larger unions.
Lodi workers are associated with Restaurant Workers Union — Sindicato de Trabajadores de Restaurantes, Local 1, a small group founded in 2020, rather than working with a larger union. That might suit a small restaurant, said Tareq Saghie, a New York organizer Restaurant Opportunities Center Unitedan advocacy and training group for hospitality workers, as it brings workers into more direct communication with management and allows for the creation of a union tailored to the type of restaurant.
But these workers don’t have the experience or resources of a larger union like Unite Here Local 100which represents many established restaurants in New York, including Grand Central Oyster Bar and Shun Lee Palace, he said. Workers in Lodi said they are helping others at at least four New York restaurants form unions.
Typically, when employees notify an employer that they are organizing a union, management can either recognize the union or call for an election.
At Lodi, the atmosphere was relatively friendly before workers notified management of their effort in January 2023, said Rose Thomas, a baker there from June 2022 to June 2023. “We didn’t have any managers yelling or to verbally abuse or something along these lines”. Workers said they are seeking better and fairer wages, benefits such as health insurance and safer working conditions.
But once management called for union elections, the environment quickly became hostile, Ms. Thomas said. According to the complaint issued by the NLRB — which is supported by dozens of audio recordings, screenshots and employee affidavits — managers began monitoring workers more closely, reporting private text messages between employees and making employees feel they were being monitored. .
The complaint says management “invoked racial bias” to discourage employees from joining the union. In affidavits filed with the board, workers said the restaurant hired an anti-union consultant who identified himself under a false name. The consultant held meetings with Latino employees — tapes of which were heard by The New York Times — in which he warned them not to trust English-speaking colleagues who had joined the union effort.
In interviews, Latino workers said Mr. Matos invoked his identity as a fellow Hispanic immigrant. Shortly after the union’s announcement, one worker said in a sworn statement to the board, Mr. Mattos lunged at him, pointed a finger and said, “Eso no se hace” (“We’re not doing that.”).
Eric Schmidt, a server at Lodi, has taken a leadership role in organizing the union and has a second job as a caterer. In a February 2023 text message seen by the Times, Mr. Matos told the other employer that Mr. Schmidt had betrayed him by helping the union effort. The employer, who asked not to be identified, said in an interview that she felt Mr. Mattos was warning her not to work with Mr. Schmidt. (He kept Mr. Schmidt anyway.)
The union says three-quarters of Lodi workers signed cards saying they wanted the group to represent them. However, workers voted out the union in February 2023, and that month, workers began filing unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board.
An administrative law judge plans to hear the case starting June 24, and it could take months for the judge to make a decision. If the judge orders Cemex, Mattos Hospitality could appeal the decision to the labor board and delay negotiations, said Mr. Hirsch, the law professor.
A Cemex mandate “lowers the barriers” to a successful union, he said. “It doesn’t diminish them all.”
Christina Morales contributed reporting.
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