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Union bagels
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Corner Bodo’s Bagels employees seek to unionize
The majority of employees at Bodo’s on the Corner have signed union authorization cards, and requested voluntary recognition of the union.
By Brielle Entzminger reporter@c-ville.com
May 18 – 24, 2022 c-ville.com
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olding colorful homemade signs and pictures of bagels, Bodo’s employees—joined by several dozen community members—gathered on the Corner last week, urging the restaurant to allow its staff to unionize. A majority of the workers at the shop’s Corner location have presented signed union cards to management in an effort to improve wages, benefits, and overall working conditions. “We are doing this not because we dislike Bodo’s—but because we want to improve it. In the three-plus years that I’ve been here, the starting wage has never been at or above a living wage,” said employee Malcolm Augat during the rally. “[Bodo’s] needs to make sure that it has workers from the city, who can afford to live in the city.” “I know people who haven’t gotten a raise in a year and a half—I got one last month and in January. I’ve been here eight months,” added employee William Wagoner. Employee Kieran Williams called for an end to the alleged sexual misconduct at Bodo’s. He claimed that a former female worker touched his crotch twice during their first shift together last year. Though he says he immediately reported the incident to management, he had to work with her for nearly three more months, until she was fired for not showing up to work. “I know countless other people who have quit because they’ve had negative interactions with other co-workers, including other cases of sexual harassment…
and [whose] harassers are still employed by Bodo’s,” he added. In an email, Bodo’s co-owner Scott Smith says management did speak with that former employee about inappropriate touching and believed the situation had been resolved to Williams’ satisfaction. Bodo’s has a policy prohibiting sexual harassment. Charlottesville City Councilors Michael Payne and Sena Magill, along with 57th District Delegate Sally Hudson, also voiced their support of the Bodo’s union, and encouraged more service workers across the city to unionize. However, not all Bodo’s employees are on board with the union effort. Six of the Corner Bodo’s 14 employees have not signed union cards yet. One Bodo’s worker silently protested throughout last week’s rally, holding up a brown cardboard sign saying, “8+ year Bodo’s employee AGAINST the union.” Since requesting voluntary recognition of the union—which would become a part of the United Food & Commercial Workers Local 400—last week, pro-union employees claim they have also received negative reactions from Bodo’s managers, as well as co-owners Smith and John Kokola. Wagoner and Williams, who have been working to unionize the Corner Bodo’s for about half a year, accuse management of refusing to meet with union members, and making it “harassment” to ask people to join the union. One owner also came into the Corner location last week, and made employees “feel uncomfortable,” alleges Williams.
