Calgary coffee company may still be unionbusting

Back in February, I published an article about baristas in Calgary applying for union certification.

Local 401 of the United Food and Commercial Workers filed the application on 23 January 2026 on behalf of around 30 workers employed by Caffe Rosso Inc.

The Calgary-based company, also known as Rosso Coffee Roasters, owns 5 cafe locations in Calgary.

According to the application summary provided by the Alberta Labour Relations Board at the time, Local 401 applied for all those workers employed by Rosso except any in office or clerical positions.

The workers eventually voted to unionize, but that did not happen until April, which is a bit long. The delay was because Caffe Rosso kept trying to unionbust, at least according to Local 401 (see here and here).

Well, it seems as though they are at it again.

Earlier this week, the ALRB filed their first new applications report of June 2026. According to the report, Local 401 filed an application on 27 May 2026 accusing Caffe Rosso of changing the hours and duties of one of their workers, Shawn Templeton.

These actions, Local 401 claims, violates to main areas of Alberta’s Labour Relations Code.

First, because the workers recently unionized, there is a statutory freeze period in place while the workers negotiate a collective agreement with Caffe Rosso.

If a trade union has applied for certification, no employer affected by the application shall, except in accordance with an established custom or practice of the employer or with the consent of the trade union or in accordance with a collective agreement in effect with respect to the employees in the unit affected by the application, alter the rates of pay, any term or condition of employment or any right or privilege of any of those employees during the time between the date of the application and the date of its refusal, or 30 days after the date of certification.

Labour Relations Code, 147.1

Local 401 is arguing that since a statutory freeze period is in place, Caffe Rosso is not allowed to alter hours or duties of their workers, that these actions are effectively “alter[ing] the rates of pay, any term or condition of employment, or any right or privilege of” Templeton.

As well, Local 401 contends that these actions amount to a pecuniary or other penalty and that Caffe Rosso targeted Templeton specifically because of his participation in an ALRB proceeding and be cause he “is a known supporter of the union”.

No employer or employers’ organization and no person acting on behalf of an employer or employers’ organization shall discriminate against a person in regard to employment or membership in a trade union or intimidate or threaten to dismiss or in any other manner coerce a person or impose a pecuniary or other penalty on a person, because the person has testified or otherwise participated in or may testify or otherwise participate in a proceeding authorized or permitted under a collective agreement or a proceeding under this Act,

Labour Relations Code, 149.1.g.i

Their contention is that the reduction in hours—as well as “a prohibition of . . . attending the café locations”—results in a reduction in Templeton’s wage, “both his hourly wage [and] the amounts he receives in tips”. In addition, he lost “his entitlement to a free coffee or tea beverage while on shift and/or discounted purchases”.

They also allege that the prohibition on attending café locations “isolated” him from most of his fellow workers, which itself was a “pecuniary or other penalty”.

Further to the sections of the Labour Relations Code I mentioned above, Local 401 asserted that these actions violated several other sections of the code.

No employer or employers’ organization and no person acting on behalf of an employer or employers’ organization shall participate in or interfere with the representation of employees by a trade union,

Labour Relations Code, 148.1.a.ii

No employer or employers’ organization and no person acting on behalf of an employer or employers’ organization shall refuse to employ or to continue to employ any person or discriminate against any person in regard to employment or any term or condition of employment because the person is a member of a trade union or an applicant for membership in a trade union, has testified or otherwise participated in or may testify or otherwise participate in a proceeding under this Act, or has exercised any right under this Act

Labour Relations Code, 149.1.a.i, 149.1.a.iv, & 149.1.a.viii

Templeton has secured Jacob Holloway as legal representation.

Holloway is an associate at the Edmonton law firm Chivers Carpenters. He will also be representing Local 401, along with Drew Blaikie, a partner at the same firm.

Listed as representatives of Caffe Rosso are Jessie Attrell and David Crosby. Attrell is a partner at Caffe Rosso, as well as its managing director. Crosby is the company’s founder and its CEO.

Attrell and Crosby will have legal help from Kris Noonan and Justina Sebastiampillai, a partner and associate, respectively, at the international law firm Stikeman Elliott, which has an office in Calgary.

Noonan’s bio claims he “is a management-side lawyer”, and Sebastiampillai bio says that she “focuses on representing and advising private and public sector employers”.

From what I can tell, the ALRB has not publicly announced a hearing date and time for this case.