Elysian Brewing announced that it will be closing down its Georgetown production facility at the end of the year after 13 years of operation, according to workers at the plant. The company informed workers of the decision at a meeting on Thursday. The announcement comes after workers had invested more than a year negotiating with Elysian’s corporate owner, Anheuser-Busch (AB InBev), over a first contract. 

“We believe Anheuser-Busch is retaliating against Elysian employees for their union involvement,” said Paul Dascher, Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local 117. “It’s unfortunate that this company would rather shut down an iconic brewery with deep roots in the Seattle community than allow its workers to have a voice and earn a fair wage. The fact that they are harming these workers over the holidays is disgraceful.”

In August 2023, a group of 30 workers at the facility voted overwhelmingly to join Teamsters Local 117. Since then, the workers have been negotiating with the company in an effort to achieve pay and benefits closer to that of Anheuser-Busch employees elsewhere in the country. Workers say the company never mentioned the possibility of shutting down operations at the facility and the closure was not discussed in negotiations.

“We were completely blindsided by this,” said Shannon Mullins, a Quality Lead at Elysian and member of the union bargaining committee. “We are out of a job because once again the company chose profits over the lives and careers of its workers.” 

As contract negotiations wore on, the union began calling out Anheuser-Busch for dragging its feet at the bargaining table and sabotaging the workers’ demand for a fair contract. On September 28, workers ralliedoutside the company's facility in Georgetown. On October 12, the group voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike.

“This company is obligated to continue negotiating with the union, both over the decision to close the facility and its impact on workers,” Secretary-Treasurer Dascher said. “We will hold them to that obligation and continue to fight to defend our members against these anti-union practices.”

Elysian Brewing Co., founded in 1995, was purchased by Anheuser-Busch (AB InBev) in 2015. AB InBev is a Belgian multinational and the largest brewery in the world. The International Teamsters Union represents 1.2 million people in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico, including thousands of AB InBev workers at breweries for Budweiser, Michelob, Busch, and other well-known brands.