Employment data for breweries?

The MillerCoors brewery workers in Golden, CO can start as high as $47/hour - I've seen that advertised. I know they are not union, but they try to stay competitive. As with any large brewing operations, I'm sure many of these are skilled positions that require some form or certification (mechanical, electrical, etc). I don't know what the kind of merit structure they have as far as compensation increases.

The guy shlepping bags of malt, hosing down equipment and filling kegs at the 8 other breweries in Golden make minimum wage...but they don't have to pass a drug test.

 

Typically union dues are set at around 2-3 hours pay a month - so around 1.5% - lower the more hours you work, obviously. Pretty good deal considering the benefits and protections.

The "barrels per worker" figure for most "macro" sized breweries is typically something like 10,000-20,000 bbl./yr.
For instance, in MillerCoors Ft. Worth plant, where production workers are represented by the IBT, "545 employees brew up to 9 million barrels of beer a year". Labor costs in that size brewery are a relatively insignificant percentage of the retail cost of the beer.

There was no reduction in hourly pay at the Big 3 (and quoting a "wages + benefits" figure is very deceptive given few people know their own total cost to their employers). "Base pay" is still in the $28-38/hr range (see UAW Contract highlight). What was agreed to was a lower starting rate, but as can be seen those new hires work their way up over a period of years to the standard rate. Also, labor costs as a percentage of the price of the vehicle has steadily been going down in the auto industry over the past 3-4 decades.

You'd have a very hard time "proving" that lower paid workers produce better quality products, regardless of industry.

 

I work for an AB distributor and I make about 20% more per hour than some of the other distributors around my area. Our top pay is nearly $26 per hour with union dues currently at $54 per month. Since InBev took over our raises have gone from .75 cents per year to .25 cents per year while our health insurance cost have far out grown our raises. I paid nothing for insurance until InBev took over, it started with $48 per month but is now around $600 for our "best" plan.
InBev has also significantly cut 401K contribution rates. At one point, AB was matching 108% to our retirement plan, now InBev will only match up to 8% of our retirement plan. Under AB for every $100 I contributed they matched with $108, great deal. Under InBev they will contribute $8 for every $100 I contribute and InBev also cut our medical retirement benefits out of our contract.
I've seen how well a large brewery can treat their employees under AB but I've seen how a large corporation like InBev can treat their employees. I miss the Busch family.

 

The $72 dollars per hour included the pension payments for retired workers, and health care for active and retired workers.

Edit to keep it beer related, how much of the 32/hour does the worker at AB InBev see? Are pension, healthcare and other benefits in that number?

 

Wasn't it a major reduction in retirement benefits that hit the auto industry? I'm pretty sure they reduced the amount of benefits post-retirement that people got. Many that had worked 30+ years and had medical insurance found out they had lost that benefit when the Big 3 were indeed too big to fail.

You'd also have a hard time proving that lower paid workers produce inferior products, wouldn't you say?

 

From the Teamsters' website's article
Teamsters Ratify New Anheuser-Busch Contract

Hmm... interesting. I've got a milk crate full of BCBS receipts and paid medical bills totally close to 3/4 of a million dollars from my late parents, both covered by the UAW medical insurance created during that period, that shows retirees and surviving spouses most certainly did not lose their insurance.

Oh. Let me check my September pension statement...Yup, my wife and I are still covered.

Where did I claim or imply that? Disagreeing with the inaccuracy of "...amazing how quality has gone up since labor rates went down" hardly suggests the opposite.

 

They didn't lose all the benefits, but the benefits were reduced in the bankruptcy. Co-pays went up, for example.

The Teamster number for wages and benefits looks very close to the UAW number. Who knew beer could pay so well.