Marc Fortier

Trillium Brewing Responds to Criticism of Its Labor Practices

Boston's Trillium Brewing is responding after coming under fire last week for some of its labor practices.

According to the Boston Globe, the popular craft brewery received complaints online from current and former employees after forcing many of its workers to reapply for their jobs and then offering them reduced rates of pay.

“People are leaving. We had one member of the retail team at Fort Point for over three years, who, when presented with her offer, declined,” one employee told the Globe. “We’re dissatisfied because the number that we’ve been getting in our checks has dropped, and not insignificantly.”

Most of the pay changes coincided with the opening of Trillium's new Fort Point location.

In response to the growing criticism, Trillium posted a message on its website Monday night saying it would be restoring employees' hourly wages.

"We opened Fort Point just one month ago and, in that process, some of our tenured retail staff were given a lower rate than they had previously been making," the statement reads. "We have since met with those team members and reinstated their original rate. We have also reached out to our entire staff to discuss the situation, address any questions regarding compensation and benefits, and ask for their feedback, as it is critical to our success."

"We apologize that this has caused any of our employees, customers or friends to doubt, in any way, the integrity of Trillium or their ongoing support of us," the statement continues. "We are fortunate that we've assembled such a talented team and remain committed to brewing exceptional beer that we can share with our family, friends, and customers."

Trillium said in its statement that it has already spoken with the Massachusetts Brewers' Guild to begin a discussion locally about the practice of tip-based wages.

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