Chipotle must not interfere in union efforts, shareholders say in proposal

“Companies that treat their workers with respect should have no reason to oppose adopting a worker’s rights policy that adheres to internationally-recognized labor standards on freedom of association and collective bargaining,” said Brad Lander, the New York City comptroller who filed the shareholder proposal on behalf of the New York City Retirement Systems, in a statement to MarketWatch on Monday.

The proposal calls for a non-interference policy that includes not pressuring employees seeking to form or join a union, and good-faith and timely bargaining when employees form a union.

In Chipotle’s opposition statement to the proposal, its board states that “we already are committed to complying with all laws related to freedom of association and collective bargaining, to respecting the fundamental human rights and dignity of all our employees and to creating an open and transparent culture for our employees.”

But the shareholder proposal cites an example in which the company reached a settlement with the National Labor Relations Board in a case where Chipotle closed an Augusta, Maine, location last summer after employees there filed a petition to unionize. Under the settlement announced recently, the company must pay $240,000 to 24 former Chipotle employees; offer them preferential hiring for any job openings in Maine; and post a notice in dozens of New England stores that it won’t close stores or discriminate against employees who support unionization.

In-depth: Unions’ push at Amazon, Apple and Starbucks could be ‘most significant moment in the American labor movement’ in decades

Chipotle’s chief corporate affairs officer, Laurie Schalow, said in a statement Monday that the company agreed to settle because it would have been costly and time-consuming to litigate the case. Schalow added: “We closed the Maine restaurant because of staffing and other issues and not because of any union activities of the employees there,” an assertion that’s also in the company’s proxy.

The filers of the resolution, New York City’s five retirement systems, together own nearly 49,000 shares of Chipotle, according to a news release from Lander’s office. On behalf of the retirement systems, Lander has filed several similar resolutions related to collective bargaining, freedom of association and more at other high-profile companies this proxy season, including at Starbucks Corp.
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A couple of weeks ago, Starbucks investors approved the resolution.

Chipotle investors will vote on the proposal at the company’s annual general meeting on May 25.

Also: Apple will examine commitment to workers’ rights after shareholder push