She Wolf Bakery Workers Cook Up Union Plan, Move Toward Election

BROOKLYN, NY — The secret ingredient to great, fresh bread at this New York City bakery is a union contract, its workers said.

Workers at Greenpoint-based bakery She Wolf — which sells its bread at the Fort Greene and McCarren Park farmers markets — filed for a union election last week.

And the workers said fair pay and a unified voice for workers is the only way to promise Brooklyn more high-quality baked goods.

"Currently, we are financially insecure and fear having to weather unexpected expenses when we are barely able to afford our monthly costs of living here," said Sophie Porter-Hyatt, a baker at She Wolf Bakery.

"Only by strengthening the material position of the workers will we be able to expand our production while still maintaining the handcrafted, high quality of our bread."

A majority of the bakery's 23 eligible workers turned in their authorization cards to the National Labor Relations Board last week, moving the workers one step closer to an election, according to a representative of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union.

A spokesperson for The Marlow Collective, which includes She Wolf Bakery and several other Brooklyn restaurants, told Patch the group is aware of the recent NLRB filing and prepared to move forward in good faith.

"We are very proud of the work we do together and recognize and respect our employees' fundamental right to organize and bargain collectively," a spokesperson of The Marlow Collective said. "We want to ensure that this is in fact their desire and anticipate negotiating in good faith with the Union if this is their decision."

Michael Mangieri, a 20-year food industry vet and baker at She Wolf Bakery, said he loves making food and working at She Wolf Bakery, but it's time for a shift in the business's power dynamics.

"We work long and demanding hours, often putting aside our own needs for the expectations of the job," Mangieri said.

"I love making food and being a part of a company that engages in deep relationships with local farmers. But it's unacceptable that non-management workers do not receive a living wage or affordable health care, however committed they may be."

She Wolf Bakery started out of the Roman's kitchen in 2009 and eventually made it to the table at Marlow & Sons and Diner, which all belong to The Marlow Collective. The bread, baked out of a space in Greenpoint, now is also served at Stranger Wines, Marlow & Daughters and Achilles Heel.

And the She Wolf Bakery workers have a few examples to work off of. Workers at well-known Brooklyn spots like Alamo Drafthouse and Barnes & Noble also kicked off union efforts in 2023.

In Crown Heights, Barboncino became New York City's first pizzeria to form a union and in Bed-Stuy, Daily Press won an ambitious union contract with a health saving fund and protections.