NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Service industry workers said they've taken a big hit during the pandemic as everyone tries to make ends meet.
It's leading employees at one Nashville business to try to become the first union coffee shop in the city.
The unionization effort is happening at Three Brothers Coffee.
"Right now we're just looking for support from the community," said employee Paige Lemon.
As announced through updates on their Instagramand Twitter pages, they presented their unionization notice to the owner, TJ Wilt, earlier this month.
So far, employees said they haven't had a meeting with Wilt to discuss the plans to unionize, though they said Wilt scheduled and then canceled one meeting.
But employees said their movement is about much more than just one coffee shop.
"We value this place. We value the work we're doing and we're not just here and then leaving. We want to stick around and see a return on the investment we are putting into the business day to day," Lemon said.
They say they're already hearing from other coffee shops in this economy who say they're interested in following suit.
NewsChannel 5 has reached out to the coffee shop owner for comment about the unionization effort. We have not heard back yet.
