Teamsters are calling for a boycott of Molson Coors’ products as workers continue to strike at the beer giant’s Fort Worth production brewery.
Members of Local 997 have been on strike since February 17, seeking pay raises, retirement benefits and the end of tiered health care. Teamsters and Molson Coors failed to reach a three-year contract renewal prior to the strike.
A few days after workers walked out, Molson Coors CEO Gavin Hattersley and CFO Tracey Joubert spoke at the Consumer Analyst Group of New York (CAGNY) conference and touted the company’s contingency plan, which included the resumption of production using “current employees.”
“We packaged beer, we brewed beer, we delivered beer,” he said. “And in fact, we actually delivered more than our contingency plan actually suggested we should. So the brewery is off to a great start.”
“Molson Coors won’t negotiate in good faith with workers and is accused of breaking the law,” Teamsters wrote in a pamphlet shared on social media. The pamphlet claims that Molson Coors has “offered workers raises of less than $1 an hour” during negotiations.
“Don’t drink a drop of Molson Coors until they respect the workers!” Teamsters wrote. “Texans stand with Texas workers for fair wages and benefits!”
In a statement shared with Brewbound, Molson Coors chief communications officer Adam Collins said: “We remain committed to doing what’s right for everyone and reaching a fair agreement in Fort Worth, so it’s disappointing that the union has chosen this approach. We’ve offered highly competitive wages and benefits off an already strong base, and participated in nearly 40 negotiating sessions with the union as we work towards a deal.”
At the CAGNY conference, Joubert said the cost to the company has been immaterial thus far. However, Local 997 secretary-treasurer Rick Miedema said the costs being incurred at the brewery are greater than what company execs are letting on.
Miedema told Brewbound in a statement: “Molson Coors is using current management employees to ‘attempt’ to run processes. They transported management from other breweries, paying to put them up in hotels, and giving them meal allowances. All this, including the downtime, has cost the company more money than compared to the package we had on the table to close the contract deal.”
Molson Coors did not discuss the then-impending strike during its Q4/full-year 2023 earnings call with investors last month. In 2023, Molson Coors’ net sales increased +9.4%, to $11.7 billion, while financial volumes increased +1.8%. In Q4, Molson Coors’ global net sales increased +6.1%, to $2.79 billion, while depletions increased +4.3%.