The strike continued Monday at the Molson Coors plant in Fort Worth where the Teamsters Local 997 walked off the job over the weekend.
More than 400 workers at the Molson Coors brewery in South Fort Worth have gone on strike. About 93% of Teamsters Local 997 voted in favor of the strike this weekend.
"At the table, they want to present us with their demands like we're supposed to take it," says the union's Jeff Pruitt, who is a member of the negotiating committee. "We're out here not because we want to be. We're here because Molson has forced us out here."
In the fourth quarter of 2023, Molson Coors turned a $103.3 million profit. Pruitt says the company is cutting workers out of that success.
"We work hard in here," he says. "We're the ones who brew the beer, package it and ship it out."
Pruitt says if Molson Coors does not support its workers now, the company will have trouble attracting the next generation of talent.
"That Miller sign is an icon for Fort Worth. This used to be the place to get a job," he says. "People wanted to get a job here. It isn't like that anymore."
Molson Coors says it respects the union's right to strike but says Teamsters Local 997 has cut off communication.
"At this point, the union has not responded to our last offer, which exceeds local market rates for similar unionized roles, but we remain committed to reaching an agreement that is fair to both our employees and to the Fort Worth brewery," the company's Adam Collins wrote in an email.
Collins said Molson Coors has a contingency plan to keep shelves stocked.
"We deliberately built up distributor inventories across the country in recent weeks, our five other U.S. breweries have extra capacity, and we are well equipped to ensure that consumers will be able to buy their favorite Molson Coors products," he wrote.
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