Bouldering Project workers in Twin Cities file for union election

(Workers United photo)

Workers at Bouldering Project’s climbing gyms in Minneapolis and St. Paul went public with their organizing drive earlier this month.

The campaign would bring together a bargaining unit of about 130 workers, whose daily tasks include welcoming new customers, running youth programs and meet-ups, maintaining their facilities and supervising climbers.

“Building community with my coworkers has always been the best part of this job,” Arrow Shipp, an operations specialist at the St. Paul gym, said. “I want to build a better Bouldering Project.”

A delegation of Bouldering Project workers delivered a letter to management July 9 showing majority support for their union and requesting voluntary recognition, so that contract negotiations could begin.

The employer denied that request, and workers, with support from the Chicago and Midwest Regional Joint Board of Workers United, have since filed for an election with the NLRB.

In a press release, Workers United, an affiliate of the Service Employees (SEIU) union, said an overwhelming majority of the potential bargaining unit signed onto the letter, which explained what Bouldering Project workers hope to gain through collective bargaining.

“We spend time here on our days off, we adore the work we do, and our coworkers have become like family,” the letter said. “We believe that to maintain the exceptional culture that is core to both (Minneapolis and St. Paul Bouldering Project locations), we need an equal voice at the table.”

Workers said they hoped to bargain for better wages and benefits that reflect the climbing industry’s rapidly increasing profits.

Workers United represents staff at over 30 climbing gyms across the U.S.

In Minnesota, about 100 workers at four Vertical Endeavors climbing gyms voted to join the United Food and Commercial Workers in 2023 and ratified their first contract last year.