Burger War

Blog Insider News 22 June 2016 Insider 6

Cult eatery Krowarzywa face a massive PR battle to rescue not just their reputation, but possibly their business. While few venues have done more...

Cult eatery Krowarzywa face a massive PR battle to rescue not just their reputation, but possibly their business. While few venues have done more to transform Warsaw’s eating habits, Krowarzywa find themselves up against a ferocious public backlash after news broke that their staff had downed tools to strike against their working conditions.

From humble beginnings in 2013, the vegan burger chain has flourished to the extent that new outposts were added in Warsaw and Kraków to complement the original venture on Hoża (which itself, was traded for a far larger version across the road last year). In the process, they’ve amassed a Facebook following in excess of 50,000, and have been cited by many as one of the most influential eateries in Poland.

But all is not well. On Monday approximately 20 workers at the Hoża branch called a strike in protest over the alleged violation of their rights. In an open letter posted on Facebook, their complaints included low pay, a lack of proper contracts, the ‘monitoring’ of their work, and the arbitrary dismissal of anyone who didn’t tow the party line.

For their part, the owners issued a statement yesterday asserting that only one member of staff had been given the bullet, and that the pay scale in place at Krowarzywa was actually above the market average. The appeal has split the public: whilst some have come out in support of the owners, others are furious at the perceived double standards of a chain that has made so much of their ethical philosophy. Within a day Krowarzywa’s Facebook rating plunged to 3.9 after nearly 900 people clamoured to give it a one-star rating.

With negotiations between the owners and employees hitting an impasse, the Hoża branch remained closed on Tuesday. Neither, does a truce seem to be in sight – at 7 p.m. tonight, twin picket line protests are planned for the Marzałkowska and Kraków outposts.

(Text: AW | Photo 2 & 3: Inicjatywa Pracownicza Warszawa)

Comments

J.
22 June 2016 #1 Author

Poor and uneducated supporters of anarcho-communism are yet again inflaming conflicts and causing trouble. Seems like they have too much time on their hands, maybe they should go out and find a job instead of freeloading off the society like the parasites they are. I love how they mentioned monitoring as one of the causes for the so-called “protest”. The workers themselves are likely a bunch of thieves if they find this outraging.

I wish all the best to the owners, as a matter of fact I will visit the place ASAP, it’s now a matter of principle to me. I hope that these worthless crybabies from IP Warsaw will soon realize that it might be time to find a proper job instead of trying to force hard-working people to cave in to their pretentious demands.
- mark
  23 June 2016 #2 Author
  
  You, J, are an arse
  - J.
    30 June 2016 #3 Author
    
    Bugger off and be a parasite somewhere else.
    - Andy Moorhouse
      8 July 2016 #4 Author
      
      You do sound like a bit of an arse, J.
Mikael
23 June 2016 #5 Author

International solidarity with the strikers. Through our vegan network, me and my friends are now advising Swedish friends planning on spending their holiday in Poland to refrain from spending their money at this chain. Independent restaurant industry unions have also been notified about the conflict.
- J.
  30 June 2016 #6 Author
  
  Thankfully, in this country, nobody cares about that nonsense. I have advised all of my Swiss friends to refrain from visiting Sweden, thankfully both Norway and Finland are much safer and better-looking.