Unionized Pabst Theater Group workers represented by the Milwaukee Area Service & Hospitality Workers Union have voted to unanimously approve a new collective bargaining agreement.
PTG employees secured across-the-board wages of at least $3.75 an hour, with annual increases of at least $1.25 for all unionized workers.
The new contract also includes longevity pay increases that are based on an employee’s tenure. First year workers will receive an extra 70 cents. The longevity pay increases will top out at $3.15 an hour.
Pay increases of between $4.85 to $6.90 an hour, as well as the equivalent for salaried employees, were also included in the new contract.
The contract was ratified by PTG workers in the box office, event staff and hospitality. It lasts three years and is backdated to Oct. 1. The contract was officially ratified after balloting took place last Thursday through Sunday evening.
“The new PTG union contract continues to raise standards for hospitality workers in Milwaukee, won through strong organization rooted in democratic trade unionism,” said Peter Rickman, president and business manager of MASH. “From arenas and event venues to hotels and restaurants, the cooks and cleaners, bartenders and baristas, servers and security guards who staff hospitality industry workplaces in Milwaukee and beyond deserve living wages in their paychecks, rights and respect on the job, a voice on the job, and a seat at the table when decisions are made about their livelihoods.”
PTG workers first voted to unionize in June 2022 with a 94% vote. PTG and MASH reached their first union contract in November of that year.
