Restaurant CEO Allegedly Caught Punishing Pro-Union Worker in Recording

A Texas-based pizza chain was allegedly captured throwing out a pro-union employee, according to an audio recording that leaked on Twitter.

The audio clip, posted by the labor platform More Perfect Union on Thursday, allegedly captured the leadership of pizza chain Via 313 lashing out at employee Elyanna Calle. Founded in Austin, Texas, in 2011, the restaurant has expanded to other parts of the state and launched establishments in Utah.

Calle told Newsweek that she has been a server at Via 313's North Campus location in Austin for over a year and a half. She joined the employees of three Austin stores in filing for a union election.

"It came from the need for better situations for restaurant workers," Calle said. "It's really an industry-wide issue of a lack of livable wages, sexual harassment, unsafe working conditions. And there have been quite a few instances of each of those examples at Via 313."

The pizzeria is already under fire for alleged union busting. Shortly after its workers filed for a union election on August 4, they filed two unfair labor practice charges against Via 313 through the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). The complaints cited Section 8(a)(1) of the National Labor Relations Act, which says that an employer cannot "interfere with, restrain or coerce employees" who exercise their right to unionize.

Calle recorded audio from a pre-shift meeting at her restaurant, which she suspected was organized to discourage employees from voting for the union. She had just clocked out but decided to stay for the meeting.

"I wanted to stay to hear what they said, to make sure that if they were spreading any lies that I could clear them up," she said.

Her recording started with a Via 313 manager allegedly saying, "The long and short of it is that I also am gonna ask you to not vote the union in.

"I don't think that it would benefit us in any way. I would much rather create a relationship with those of you that I don't know and maintain a relationship with those of you that I do know, and deal with you on a direct basis, have open conversations even if they're hard, move forward in that direction rather than dealing with a third party. It's just so much less personal to me."

That was when Calle interjected, arguing against the "third-party narrative."

But she was cut off by Via 313's new CEO, Ray Risley, whose appointment has only been announced internally, according to Calle.

"Hold on, this is actually my meeting," he said. "This is a pre-shift and it's our meeting, and I appreciate your viewpoint of it. However, you're right, it's our narrative, and it's our meeting, and it's..."

"But it's incorrect, that's what I'm just trying to clear up," Calle said.

Risley continued to argue with her about whether a union constituted a "third party."

"Well you're not letting me speak," Calle said.

"You're right, I'm not," replied Risley, before swiftly cutting the meeting short.

Moments after that meeting ended, Risley allegedly kicked Calle out of the restaurant.

In a subsequent audio clip, he said, "I would like you to leave my restaurant, please. Now."

"I'm sitting here talking to my friend," Calle responded.

"Doesn't matter what you're doing. You already started something. I'm asking you to leave," the CEO said.

"Just to be clear, you started here, what? Like a week ago?" Calle said.

"Doesn't matter, I'm the CEO of the company, it's still my company," Risley said.

The restaurant industry has historically been slow to unionize, as it tends to draw a transient workforce and restaurants can quickly go out of business. But a labor movement has gained momentum amid the collision of a shrinking labor pool, a looming recession and a Democratic president in the White House, according to labor attorney Barry Saltzman.

Wages for restaurant staff have not kept pace with inflation, Saltzman told Nation's Restaurant News in July. Meanwhile, the national labor shortage has given employees leverage to negotiate and form unions. Workers also have more confidence organizing under the administration of President Joe Biden, who appointed pro-labor Lauren McFerran as the head of the National Labor Relations Board.

Newsweek reached out to Via 313 for comment.

Update 10/4/22, 9:14 a.m. ET: This story was updated with comments from Elyanna Calle.