When the Red Sox host the World Series champion Dodgers Friday night, their iconic ballpark will be the site of a labor fight.
Concession workers at Fenway Park are striking against the food and service provider Aramark after unsuccessful negotiations to reach a new contract. The previous deal expired on Dec. 31, 2024. Workers are seeking better pay and scheduling and the elimination of automation at the ballpark.
Ballpark employees voted to authorize a strike in June, and decided to strike after last week’s bargaining session didn’t yield results. The workers announced their strike on Wednesday, giving Aramark two days to reach a deal.
“If that’s what happens and we end up striking this weekend, we’re not happy about it,” ballpark employee Laura Crystal told Front Office Sports earlier this week. “We’ve all been looking forward to this series, we’re looking forward to working it…We’re doing whatever we have to do to show that we’re very serious about this and we want to be taken seriously, and so we’re going to use an opportunity that is important to both groups.”
Workers are asking fans to still attend the game, but avoid buying any food or drink at the park.
The striking employees include food and beverage vendors, but also cooks, souvenir salespeople, suite attendants, catering staff would also be involved, and workers at the nearby MGM Music Hall at Fenway. Country artist Riley Green is scheduled to perform at the venue Friday night.
Workers began striking at noon. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. local time, followed by games on Saturday and Sunday.
Aramark said in a statement to FOS earlier this week that they have “contingency plans” to handle a work disruption during a strike. A spokesperson for the Red Sox said that while the team is “not a party to these discussions, we are hopeful that a fair resolution can be agreed upon quickly.”
The fight against automation is a big one for the employees, Crystal says, because they view the person-to-person interaction that comes with their jobs as a vital part of the fan experience at MLB’s oldest ballpark. “As soon as you put a computer in place of that transaction, you’re removing that ‘it’ factor,” she told FOS last month.
