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Catalyzing worker co-ops & the solidarity economy

Increasing Labor Strife at Seward Co-op

Documents obtained by Workday Minnesota and verified by multiple anonymous sources, who are knowledgeable and engaged in hiring practices and decisions, allege that Eastside Food Co-op and Seward Community Co-op collude to preemptively deny employment to workers. When targeted workers, deemed ineligible by Eastside, apply to Seward they are denied an interview. In a rarer case a manager prepared an offer package that was denied by human resources thereby obstructing the managers ability to hire the worker.

Anonymous sources submitted and verified evidence showing that Seward’s ApplicantPro online portal identified ineligible workers with the note, “Eastside coop does not recommend we hire this person.” This designation furthermore means that the applicant is deemed ineligible to be hired at Seward.

The scope and depth of the designation is unclear but has afflicted numerous current and former Eastside employees applying to Seward. It is unclear if Seward provides the same information to Eastside.

Eastside Co-op General Manager John Lacaria said “no” when asked whether he was aware that Seward had the note “Eastside coop does not recommend we hire this person” in their ApplicantPro system. Lacaria also clarified that when called for a reference they only offer information related to confirmation of and length of employment and pay. It is therefore unclear who at Eastside is giving broader information to Seward. Seward did not respond to multiple attempts for comment.

Read the rest at Workday Minnesota

 

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