Philly stadium workers end strike for Phillies playoffs, but continue call for Aramark boycott

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Unionized concession workers at Citizens Bank Park will be back on the job this weekend after ending a four-day strike just in time for the start of the Phillies’ playoff run. Workers still don’t have a contract with concession operator Aramark, and they’re calling for fans to boycott the merchandise shops at the ballpark.

Members of Unite Here Local 274 say that since Aramark runs the retail outlets in the stadium in addition to the concessions, they hope that fans will show solidarity with their efforts to get a new contract and buy their Phillies merchandise online.

Samantha Spector is a bartender who works at all three locations at the sports complex. She said workers are returning to the job as a sign of good faith, but hopes fans still help them send a message.

Fans are “going to come in and buy food,” Spector said. “But merchandise, it’s a little bit different. You can get merchandise somewhere else.”

During last week’s strike, workers encouraged fans to bring their own food into the stadium to show their support.

The retail boycott is part of what the union describes as an “ongoing campaign to win family-sustaining wage increases and healthcare coverage for stadium workers at all the sports-complex facilities.”

Aramark currently counts hours worked at each facility separately, so if a worker is working full-time split between the places, it only counts as multiple part-time jobs.

When the strike launched last week, Aramark officials said the company “has bargained in good faith with UNITE HERE Local 274 for over six months. In the five-week period since the union rejected our offer, they have chosen to strike without making any substantive changes to their position. They continue to engage in non-productive tactics, choosing to strike again and continuing to seek a boycott of Aramark’s services.”

The Phillies open their playoff series against the New York Mets with a pair of afternoon games Saturday and Sunday. The series then shifts to New York and would return to Philly if necessary on Friday, Oct. 11.