Shows continue as scheduled as World Cafe Live workers respond to firings and threat of legal action
After two days of protests, protesting workers issued a letter outlining the 'the disrespect and intimidation that led to a hostile work environment.'
After being terminated, banned from the premises, and threatened with legal action by the new management team of World Cafe Live, employees and former employees (many of them laid off this week) of the West Philly music venue issued a response on Friday afternoon.
On Wednesday night, a group of bartenders, guest service workers, box office employees, and servers staged a walkout during a Suzanne Vega concert. Outside the venue, on Walnut Street, they read a statement that protested what they called “an unacceptable level of hostility and mismanagement” by the leadership team and CEO Joseph Callahan, a tech entrepreneur who replaced the venue’s founder, Hal Real, who stepped down last month.
» READ MORE: World Cafe Live protests continue as staffers are fired and threatened with legal action
The following day, the World Cafe Live management fired back by terminating 10 employees and announcing plans to file a formal complaint to federal authorities and the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, saying their walkout was “not only disruptive to our guests, but also resulted in significant reputational and operational damage to the organization.”
On Friday, the protesting workers from the WCL — which is not a unionized workplace — posted a response on their Instagram account named SaveWorldCafeLive, with Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Freebird” as accompanying music.
“The tone of the press release aligns with the abrasive and threatening behavior that has been present since the takeover,” the workers’ statement reads. “Our demands letter outlines the disrespect and intimidation that led to a hostile work environment, and their response should only serve as further proof of what we’ve been experiencing on the inside.”
The WCL management said that the staff, many of whose members have resigned in recent weeks, contributed to “a culture of complacency and entitlement,” but said that under new management it was “rebuilding stronger, more transparent, and more community-driven than ever before.”
In their statement on Friday, the workers said where Callahan “sees complacency and entitlement, we see a staff of hardworking individuals showing up day-in and day-out to serve the community while facing the combined challenges of a music venue, bar, restaurant, and nonprofit organization.”
The United Musicians and Allied Workers Union announced they were “standing in solidarity” with the World Cafe Live workers on Friday.
Shows went on as planned in the two-level venue on Thursday night, with Sudanese American singer Sinkane upstairs in the Lounge and Sun Ra Arkestra downstairs in the Music Hall.
No food service was available, though drinks were served.
Performances were expected to continue this weekend, with picketers positioned outside on Walnut Street. A Black Music Month celebration is scheduled to be held in the Lounge on Friday night. Mary Fahl of the October Project is playing the Music Hall on Saturday while local songwriter Khalil Amaru is scheduled to play the Lounge that evening.
Riot Nerd Philly, which intended to hold its dance party at WCL on Aug. 8, took to social media on Friday to announce a change in date and location in response to the situation.
“As a brand that is vocal about equality and caring about people’s rights and well-being, we feel we need to align our actions with our values,” their post reads.
Read the WCL workers’ full statement here.