Tired Hands (2021)

I don't know if unionization is totally necessary because that comes with other challenges, but it seems like these places need a real, actual HR professional(s) in their administrative offices that are separate from ownership. These places need effective policies with strong enforcement and ownership needs to empower the HR departments to make decisions without much ownership input. HR needs be a safe place for all employees to voice concerns about workplace behaviors so all employees have a line of communication that will take their concerns seriously and act accordingly. This doesn't end at policy enforcement. There needs to be regular management and staff training on obvious topics like sexual harassment, but also ancillary topics like implicit bias. Employees need to be trained to understand that being a decent person is part of the job so even if someone brews great IPA, but they're also a total a-hole, they're actually NOT a great brewery employee and need to be disciplined or let go.

It is easy to see how things could get out of hand at a brewery. It starts with someone who has an incredible talent for brewing, but suddenly so many people love their beer that their business grows and now in addition to brewing, they also need to run a business, and just because you can brew beer does not mean you can effectively run a business. You see this in so many other industries, tech comes to mind specifically. There is nothing places like TH or others can do instantly to fix this, but over time management at these places can demonstrate they are taking the right steps to change their culture by investing the in the right administrative practices and changing culture at the top.

And before anyone says these changes are too expensive for a small business, I work at a small non-profit that I feel does these things very effectively on a shoestring budget. It takes full management buy-in and support to implement these changes more than it takes $$ investment.

 

.....And now the whole "apology" Instagram post has been completely deleted.

 

Problem is, with very, very few exceptions that HR exists to help the bosses, brand and the company, not the employees that actually need them. Regardless of where their offices are or what that structure is supposed to be.

Edit: Not that they shouldn't try this, just pointing out HR is much more often a symptom of the problem than the cure.

 

Seems that would fit for the anecdote about him playing fart noises over the sound system while a group of deaf people were having a meet-up. Not sure you could get more childish.

 

Supposedly staff refused to work today. Can’t verify if this is true or not but it wouldn’t surprise me.

I don’t really see a way back from this for him, other than selling the business to someone upstanding or moving it to some backwater country where they’ve never heard of the allegations. Even if he were to somehow prove to everyone that he’s a changed man and how he will fix it, I think most people’s minds are made up and the damage is done. Just my take, anyway.

 

Work stoppages would have a big effect. Seeing them also lends credence to the allegations. I think unlike the allegations against Hill, these are very much directed at his employees. I got the impression from what I read and heard, the stories about Hill were about his off the clock behavior and treatment of women in the industry writ large. I don't see a good end for Jean and his wife here. I'd call them fools but honestly accountability for this type of behavior would be the exception historically, so until VERY recently they had zero reason to expect any comeuppance. Also, there are just too many good breweries out there. I don't think many in the area are quite as talented in saisons and lagers and ipas, but I'm not going to feel bad drinking more Tonewood or going a little out of my way to D96 when I'm up in the area anyway. Easier to be this way with people still willing to wait in tremendously long milkshake ipa lines. Now? Not so much.

 

Looks like the employees posted. I won't list it all here. But Jean steps down from operations, his wife supposedly did March 2021, and they're looking for new management. Obviously no talk of employee ownership or Jean and his wife selling their stakes. But I would be happy if they were made minority owners to employees. That would bring me back even if he and his wife were involved, as that still is likely a better model than many breweries sadly! Employees owning 51 percent would mean a lot in this industry's low standards (ie, you're lucky to be working here/ aren't we all friends model/ nonsense).

 

Welp, guess I won't be wearing my Alien Church shirt anymore. I really liked that shirt, too.

 

Poor Mike Lawrence lol (ig: @mikeillustrated). That man does good work

 

Absolutely agree, and great point. Hopefully some astute owners and managers will look at the current situation at TH and elsewhere - PR disaster, devalued brand, work stoppage- and realize a management team existing merely to help the bosses/brand/bottom line at the expense of its employees will in the long run only hurt the bosses/brand/bottom line.

 

Something no one seems to talk about, and I don't bring this up as an excuse at all, is that at a brewery there's an awful lot of drinking going on. Not necessarily crazy drunk, but steady, impairing drinking on the part of many employees, from brewers to FOH staff. Again, not an excuse, but kind of a recipe for disaster, in many respects.

 

Full text of employees' Instagram post:

This message comes to you from the staff at Tired Hands Brewing Company.

By our request, Jean Broillet IV has stepped down from all daily operations immediately. Julie has not been working here since March, 2021.

We, the existing staff, will remain in place and continue operating as we search for new leadership to build a stronger culture here. The recent outpouring of stories about our industry have unified us in addressing our own experiences and we stand in solidarity with anyone that has ever experienced toxic workplace abuse, racism or sexism in the brewing industry, including our co-workers, past and present.

We thank Brienne @ratmagnet for her work. We as an industry and a community know that we can always do better. We will do better.

With love & humility,
The employees of THBC

 

That could exacerbate things for sure, but I think the general 'boys club' atmosphere of the industry is a far bigger driver of these behaviors -- and those behaviors then being swept under the rug -- than people having a few shift beers.

 

Agreed, and a "few shift beers" can certainly cloud one's judgment and behavior. And, honestly, I think that about some of the more questionable posts here on BA, many of which are clearly written with a few beers under the belt.

 

Yeah I think founder's employees using racist language were empowered more by a culture that accepted that behavior than their BAC level. Jean and co. and all the rest of these people in these stories act the way they do because they're lousy people and have zero expectations of being held accountable/ having any negative consequences.

 

Well I think the old one drink a shift applies here. If breweries are tolerating impaired employees they're violating OSHA most likely and putting other employees at physical and emotional risk. That to me is indicative of larger cultural issues that probably allows for racism sexism etc. regardless of an employee's alcohol level.

 

I don’t think beer has much to do with it.

These people already have these feelings of inadequacy, delusion and lack of humility firmly planted in their own heads to begin with.

Does beer exacerbate the behavior of these types of people who already harbor these types of abhorrent behaviors and comments internally? Absolutely.

 

There’s a “message from the staff” on TH’s Instagram now saying Jean has stepped down from operations and that Julie hasn’t been involved in operations for a couple months...

https://www.instagram.com/p/CPBThjZDj_y/?utm_medium=copy_link

There were a lot of stories about Jean’s inner circle being as bad as him, so still TBD what this means in practice, but seems like a step forward?

 

That’s hardly surprising. The “boss” usually hires like-minded people and then his/her culture of personality permeates that “inner circle.” Then, it’s either get in line with that train of thought or get tied to the tracks.

Fortunately it appears they’ve hired enough people decent enough to try to do the right thing, as, from the outside looking in, this change appears to be led by the employees, not management. Well…either that or they’re in true, save-their-ass, desperation mode.

 

I understand others' skepticism, but this is about as good an outcome as I could have hoped for in such a short period time time: employees taking it upon themselves to rid the entity of the central source of the issues.

Yes, I know money will still be going to the owner... and yes, I know there's still likely an issue of a boys' club in the workplace... but this step shows a willingness to institute dramatic, necessary change and is a swift rebuttal of the non-apology that Jean issued. That's more than enough for me, personally, to support their endeavors going forward as they strive to improve.

If you think I'm being hasty and misguided by the fact that I love their product and many aspects of their business, it's certainly possible so feel free to point out how.