I cruise by the Central Park boathouse on my regular cycling trips up and down Manhattan. So, I’ve been able to cheer on the folks who are on strike to try to get a union. There’s some news on that today:

Representatives from the Boathouse restaurant in Central Park and the New York Hotel Trades Council remain locked in negotiations in a last-ditch attempt to resolve a longstanding conflict over unionization before a federal labor board moves forward with a legal complaint.

….

The NLRB complaint will allege that the restaurant illegally threatened workers and punished more than 15 of them for supporting the union, according to an NLRB spokeswoman. The NLRB will also seek an order to require the Boathouse to enter into contract negotiations, even though the workers are currently not in a union.

The labor dispute between the workers and Boathouse management came to a head on Aug. 9 when dozens of the restaurant’s busboys, dishwashers and waiters, led by the union, walked off the job. The workers have been protesting what they allege are management attempts to stifle unionization and the illegal firing of union supporters.

About 100 former and current employees of the restaurant have been demonstrating outside of the restaurant almost every day since the dispute began, banging on buckets and drums and shouting out "shame" to restaurant patrons. [emphasis added]

   And here they are!

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   If you happen into the Park, go by and give them a hug!