Amelie’s vows to change its practices after boycott threats. ‘We need to do better.’
Update: On Aug. 7, Amelies released a statement to local press, outlining steps the company plans to take over the next six months to address the community’s concerns. This will start with a third-party organizational assessment to analyze policies relating to diversity and inclusion. The statement also sought to clarify what it called the spread of recent misinformation.
Amelie’s French Bakery and Cafe, at the center of a social media firestorm from activists over its statements about working with local nonprofits and treatment of employees, apologized for “tone-deaf responses” and pledged to improve its relations with the Black community.
Several advocacy groups have called for a boycott of the popular bakery after at least a dozen former employees commented on social media posts from Amelie’s and the advocacy groups in recent weeks. Former workers accused the company of unfair labor practices and said it has mistreated Black employees.
The activists also say the bakery misrepresented its fundraising relationship with their organizations.
Amelie’s has hired a company to conduct an internal audit and review its labor practices, said Frank Reed, managing member and CEO at Amelie’s, in a statement to CharlotteFive and The Charlotte Observer, in response to the claims.
“We know that we have problems to fix, and we are evaluating our business practices from the inside out so that we can make the necessary changes,” Reed said in the statement. “We need to do better to ensure that every employee and customer feel respected, valued, and heard.”
Social media posts
Amelie’s issued a statement on May 31 condemning racism after the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer. “We cannot be silent, we are in this together,” the company stated in its post.
On June 4, Amelie’s announced that for the weekend of June 6, 100% of the profits from “box of love” sales of a pack of macarons would go “to the Charlotte Chapter of the NAACP” with the goal of raising $10,000.
Then on June 6, Amelie’s announced on social media, in a post that has since been deleted, that it was “looking forward to working with” other Charlotte organizations, including Greater Charlotte RISE and Block Love CLT, nonprofits that provide aid and advocacy in Charlotte’s Black communities.
In that post, Amelie’s said it takes “full responsibility” and acknowledges issues and “unacceptable behavior” that occurred in the past, and it is committed to to make the company a “better place for employees, customers and community.”
Late last month, the organizations said they had no established partnership with Amelie’s.
Feed the Movement, an organization that provides meals for groups protesting racial injustice, was contacted by Amelie’s but chose to reject the offer of a donation, citing concerns from former employees.
Greater Charlotte RISE stated to the Observer and on social media that it was never contacted by the bakery. Deborah Woolard, founder of Block Love Charlotte, stated on Facebook that she received an email from Amelie’s that she did not respond to and that she has not received donations from the company.
The bakery issued a statement on social media in late June as the concerns from advocacy groups surfaced, apologizing for its earlier posts about partnerships and donations that “came across as dishonest and misleading.”
‘Lack of communication’
When Amelie’s hosted its fundraiser in early June, the bakery donated $7,536 to the NAACP Empowerment Programs, money that goes to the national NAACP organization, according to donation receipts posted to Amelie’s website.
Corine Mack, president of the Charlotte chapter of the NAACP, said the Charlotte group will not receive any of those funds because the funding does not “trickle down.”
Reed said there was a “lack of communication” with organizations.
“We shouldn’t have posted on social media until everything was finalized and we all agreed to terms. Truthfully, we didn’t need to post about it at all,” Reed said.
Jasmine Sherman, founder of Greater Charlotte RISE, said she appreciates the concerns shown on social media about Amelie’s claims on working with her organization, but said that the focus should be on Amelie’s workplace environment.
“I’m definitely upset that they used our name. But we really need not to lose focus on the fact that there are labor abuses happening at that organization and no one is talking about that,” Sherman said.
Calls to boycott Amelie’s
Greater Charlotte RISE, along with Feed the Movement, crafted a list of demands for Amelie’s to accept before either group would consider partnering with the company.
Demands include paying staff a minimum of $15 an hour, the immediate removal of co-founder Bill Lamb from any decision-making position and donating 10% of gross profits split equally between the organizations activists claim Amelie’s misrepresented.
In 2014, a former Amelie’s employee made his resignation letter public, saying he had “reservations about the legality of some of the labor policies,” the Observer previously reported. The employee, Justin Miller, who had served as manager of Amelie’s production kitchen, also said he had filed a wage theft complaint with the U.S. Department of Labor.
The Department of Labor, though it did not name the complainant, found 46 violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act between May 2012 and May 2014 in its investigation of Amelie’s, data from the department’s enforcement database shows. Amelie’s agreed to pay $14,768 in back wages, according to the data.
In response to the advocates’ request that the minimum wage be raised, Reed said that “wage reconsideration” will be included in Amelie’s internal audit.
Reed confirmed that in 2018, Lamb referred to a group of Black baristas at the NoDa location as “the help.” He said he arranged a meeting between Lamb and the baristas, in which Lamb apologized.
Lamb has since been banned from the NoDa location and has not been involved with day-to-day businesses decisions, Reed said. Reed said they also started hosting diversity and sensitivity sessions at all of the company’s Charlotte-area bakeries.
In a statement, Lamb said his comments disrespected Amelie’s employees.
“It is humbling to admit when you are wrong and even more so when you admit that something you did caused pain to others,” Lamb said in the statement. “I apologized at the time, but realize it wasn’t enough. I take responsibility for my actions and sincerely apologize to the women involved, to our Amelie’s team and to the Charlotte Community.”
Amelie’s social media posts prompted Saminah Chapman, a former barista at the NoDa cafe, to comment on Instagram. She said Amelie’s needs to speak directly with employees who have been impacted by the company’s behavior.
“There was something about them shouting Black Lives Matter now that rubbed me the wrong way, because the way that they treated Black people specifically there is not indicative of that comment,” said Chapman, who is Black.
Amelie’s says it was ‘tone-deaf’
In a statement posted to social media on June 28, Amelie’s apologized for earlier posts about partnerships and donations that “came across as dishonest and misleading.”
Amelie’s apologies, both public and private, did not address specific actions or point to a solution, Sherman said. “What they’ve done is they were like ‘Sorry we got caught. We worded it wrong.’ ”
In a statement, Reed said Amelie’s public statements were inadequate.
“Our responses have been tone-deaf and we missed an opportunity at a crucial time to be a part of the solution and not the problem. We created our problem and have let down our employees, patrons, and community,” Reed said. “We truly are sorry. I am sorry.”
Reed said Amelie’s is evaluating its “company culture.” While Amelie’s leadership is predominately white, the company’s staff is 30% Black. “Change has to come from the top,” Reed said.
Amelie’s announced it would publish receipts for donations to its website in its June 28 apology. Further donations to the NAACP in 2020 will go to the Charlotte branch, Reed said.
“We understand why the Black community is outraged and offended and instead of an unsolicited apology, we will prove to Charlotte through our intentions and actions sooner than later,” Reed said.
This story was originally published July 6, 2020 at 5:42 PM.
