Trouble Brewing: Employee Activism at BrewDog​

By Rachel Strickland​
The Story

The UK’s largest craft brewer BrewDog has appointed an external consultancy firm to lead an independent review into allegations from staff of assault, harassment and bullying. Alongside this, the majority of staff will receive pay rises, 100 new employees will be hired to ease pressure on existing workers, and an ‘Ethics Hotline’ to report misconduct will be implemented (Independent).

Allegations were brought to light in an open letter from BrewDog’s employees who described a “culture of fear” where “being treated like a human being was sadly not always a given”. Stating that the company has pursued “growth at all costs” while failing to address employee complaints, the letter also criticised the alleged “lies, hypocrisy and deceit” of the company’s PR campaign and demanded both an apology and “genuine, meaningful change”.

With Brewdog describing themselves as the “world’s first carbon negative brewery”, many investors in their previous £80 million crowdfunding may have initially been attracted to the company’s ESG credentials (Financial Times). However, any further fundraising could be restricted if the company is seen to not equally prioritise the 'S' and ‘G’ in ESG, for Social and Governance.

What It Means For Businesses And Law Firms

Brewdog is not the only company to have faced such allegations. In August last year, employees at make-up company Glossier published an open letter accusing the company of racism and poor working conditions (Financial Times). E-commerce giant Amazon was also subject to an open letter from over 4,500 employees In April 2019, calling for the company to take greater action on climate change (Business Insider).

When managing employee activism, companies may involve employment lawyers to advise on compliance with employment rights and regulation, alongside contentious matters such as employment tribunal claims, consultation with unions, and cessation of contracts.

The legal sector itself is not immune to such issues: in 2018, the largest ever global survey on harassment and bullying in the legal profession was conducted, evidencing that 1 in every 2 female respondents and 1 in every 3 male respondents had been bullied in the workplace (International Bar Association). Many law firms have begun taking action in the wake of this – for example, Ashurst LLP introduced bystander intervention training and launched a calling out campaign (LexisNexis; Ashurst website).