By Kolby LaMarche

Black Cap Coffee, a Church Street-area staple known for its fair-trade beans and community vibe, announced Sunday that its flagship downtown location at 136 Church Street has closed indefinitely, just hours after its unionized employees began an unfair labor practice strike.

The sudden shutdown, posted on Facebook late Sunday night, stunned regulars who had lined up for years at the Pearl Street offshoot of the crop-to-cup roaster founded in 2016. 

“After careful consideration and in light of irreconcilable differences with the newly formed union, we have made the difficult decision to permanently close our downtown Burlington café effective immediately,” the statement read. The company’s Stowe and Waterbury locations remain open.

Employees represented by Black Cap Coffee Workers United (an affiliate of the Emergency Workplace Organizing Committee) voted 11-1 to unionize in September. 

Bargaining began in October, but workers say management repeatedly refused to provide requested information on scheduling policies, health-care costs, and tip distribution—violations that prompted a National Labor Relations Board charge filed last week and the strike that started Saturday morning.

Scheduling had become chaotic in recent months, with some workers receiving as little as 12 hours of notice for shifts and others seeing hours cut without explanation, staff said. 

The union had also sought paid sick leave and a clearer path to health insurance—benefits the company had allegedly advertised but never fully delivered, workers said.

In its social media post, the company thanked customers “for nine incredible years” and said the decision was “necessary to ensure the long-term sustainability of our remaining cafés.”

The closure eliminates roughly 15 unionized jobs in the heart of downtown Burlington at the start of the holiday season. Striking workers set up an informational picket line Sunday morning, handing out flyers and collecting donations for a strike fund.