Labor Dispute and Closure: Inside a Michigan Coffee Chain's Turbulent End

Dispute Over Pay Equity Ignites at Ann Arbor Coffee Company

A conflict over compensation emerged at Ann Arbor’s Mighty Good Coffee in July 2018, when senior barista Nya Njee gave her two weeks’ notice and told owner Nic Sims that a racial pay disparity drove her decision, according to a report by Vice’s Munchies.

Njee, who had worked for the company since August 2016, held the title and responsibilities of Senior Barista and had received two strong performance reviews, yet she was still earning the $10 per hour she made when she first started at Mighty Good. She claims she was verbally promised raises after six months and after a year of employment, but never received the extra compensation. Njee assumed no one was getting raises, but later discovered that her white co-workers—including some she was training—were paid more than her and received raises and promotions while she worked there. Njee was the only black woman employed at Mighty Good Coffee at the time.

After Njee submitted her notice, Mighty Good offered her a raise to $11.50 per hour. She considered the offer and estimated that, had the promised raises been given, she should have been making at least $12 per hour over the past year. Njee countered with $11.90 per hour plus back pay for the lost wages. Management refused and reportedly told Njee that her hiring manager had either lied or was ignorant of compensation policies. Other employees dispute that claim.

Njee left the company in early August 2018, accusing Mighty Good of racial discrimination. The company issued a public statement saying it would conduct an internal review to determine if changes were needed. Njee later sued the company, and the matter was settled out of court in December 2018. The settlement included a non-disclosure agreement that bars Njee from discussing the case further.

Workers Organize and File Labor Complaint

By the fall of 2018, Njee’s former co-workers had decided to take action: 13 of the staff’s 15 baristas came together to form the Washtenaw Area Coffee Workers’ Association (WACWA). The labor union focused on negotiating better working conditions and wages for baristas. On April 8, 2019, the group filed an unfair labor practices complaint regarding short staffing with the National Labor Relations Board.

Closure Announced as Union Presses for Severance

On April 15, Timothy Ryan, the attorney representing owners Nic Sims and David Myers, sent a letter to employees informing them that they were being laid off and that all store locations would be closing soon. The letter included a brief explanation for the closure:

“Nic and David have concluded that they are not well suited to operate a retail operation. They have found the experience to be overly stressful. It has created an unworkable burden on their relationship and their family.”

The following day, WACWA members demonstrated outside the company’s Main Street and South University locations. Later that same day, organizers met with Sims and Ryan to discuss a severance agreement.

As of now, all of Mighty Good’s locations are still planned to close within the coming weeks. However, a post on WACWA’s Facebook page suggests that workers are exploring the possibility of opening an employee-owned café—though it is unclear whether it would occupy one of Mighty Good’s former locations—and announced plans for a crowdfunding campaign.