Workers seek support as Murray’s Restaurant imposes new contract (stabbed its employees in the back)

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.workdayminnesota.org/index.php?news_6_4409

By Steve Share, Labor Review editor
26 March 2010

MINNEAPOLIS - Famous as the self-declared “home of the silver butter knife steak,” Murray’s restaurant in downtown Minneapolis — long a union house — now has stabbed its employees in the back with one of those silver butter knives. And twisted it.

Murray’s wrote to employees in February that the business would impose a contract in the wake of two votes by UNITE HERE Local 17 members to reject unsatisfactory contract offers.

The contract management imposed cuts wages by 10 percent for all employees except servers, makes it impossible for employees to continue to afford health insurance, slashes paid vacations, and eliminates free meals and uniforms.

Management also declared an open shop and announced that paychecks for the restaurant’s 37 workers no longer would automatically deduct union dues.

“There’s a lot of us at Murray’s who would like to meet them halfway but they want to take it all and take the union down with it,” said one longtime employee, who feared to be named publicly. “We just want a win-win situation but they want it all.”

Many of the employees have worked at Murray’s 10, 20, 30 years. “It was very disheartening to think we meant so little to them,” he said.

FULL story at link.

[47of74]

1. Yo, Murray's management

Keep up the union busting and guess where I will not be eating when in the Twin Cities even if you paid me to do so.

[frazzled]

2. I doubt you'd eat there anyway

So it's a kind of empty threat. We used to live in Minneapolis, and Murray's was a really old chestnut even back then. It's been in the same spot since 1946, with the same red velvet curtains and the same strolling musicians (well, maybe they've changed!). We ate there once--we took my husband's mother, who we thought would appreciate the old supper-club feel. The steaks are actually very good--but it is so old hat, I doubt you'd want to eat there when there are so many new and exciting restaurants in the Twin Cities.

I'm surprised Murray's was able to run a union shop for all these years (how many independent union restaurants do you know of?), especially when they probably have trouble attracting business because of their adherence to old-style food and the competition and the recession. They should just close down and call it a day. That won't help those workers either. And if they are older, they'll have a hard time getting jobs.

What's the answer? Beats me. But not eating there is not one of them. People not eating there is what has contributed to this labor dispute.

[demosincebirth]

3. I doubt that.

I know of two well performing restaurants here in town that were unionized for forty years. Four years ago one of them, suddenly shut its doors. One year ago it opened up as a non union restaurant. Hasn't been doing too well since. Pretty chicken shit if you ask me. I think it will close in the near future for lack of business. Too bad.