When Bud Light decided to partner with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney for an ad campaign last April, the company set off a conservative firestorm.
Conservative media outlets and personalities like Kid Rock led a boycott that was more effective than anyone could have predicted, battering sales and the brand’s reputation in a way few modern activism-inspired backlashes have managed.
The result was not only lost sales and market position, but also damaged goodwill with a large section of beer drinkers. Bud Light became a political lightning rod in America’s culture wars.
Even after the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Trust bought 1.7 million shares of parent company Anheuser-Busch, worth a whopping $95 million, according to CBS News, the former top-selling beer was unable to pull itself up and out of the downward spiral.
An article published by CNN at the end of December, nearly nine months after the Dylan Mulvaney debacle, revealed Bud Light was still suffering from depressed sales, surrendering its spot as America’s top-selling beer. Rival Mexican lager Modelo Especial overtook Bud Light as the number one grocery store brew for the first time ever in August.
Woke Bud Light transitioning after Worst Crisis Yet; Years-Long Boycott Has Unexpected New Consequences-„The Dylan Mulvaney marketing promo cost Bud Light million$ in sales, billion$ in market cap, and its top standing as the number 1 sold beer in the US. https://t.co/ml2n2u130G
— Kenn Reinhardt (@KennReinhardt) January 20, 2024
And the hits keep coming.
Contract negotiations between Anheuser-Busch and a union representing 5,000 of its brewery workers have stalled, prompting strike threats that could halt beer production at 12 facilities across the country, according to The Guardian.
The Teamsters union, which represents the Anheuser-Busch employees, said they have been in discussion since November but have made little progress.
Will you ever drink a Bud Light again?
Central issues include “wage increases, job security, and improvements to retirement and benefits.”
“When I started, Anheuser-Busch was what you would consider the top dog, it was the job to have. The pay was great, but with inflation, we are not the top-paying job,” one worker said, according to The Guardian.
The two sides had previously reached a tentative agreement to eliminate the current two-tiered health care system, which makes newer employees hired after 2019 pay higher costs than longer-tenured employees. This issue had caused divisions among workers doing the same jobs but with different benefits, according to Huff Post.
The union also wants contractual guarantees that workers won’t lose their jobs or positions during the five-year contract term.
Brewery employees say they are united and ready to strike over improved wages, benefits and job guarantees if necessary, which could prove apocalyptic for the beverage company.
Anheuser-Busch done for .
Imminent strike.
Plants shutting down for good.
Nobody buying product.A creepy little man dressed as a girl and Bud Light will be the downfall of an American brand Founded in 1876. pic.twitter.com/NaapuDjSdL
— 🏴 (@ScottishRidire) January 19, 2024
Workers voted 99 percent in favor last month to authorize a strike if no deal is reached before their current contract expires on Feb. 29, the Guardian reported. Such an action could bring brewing operations to a standstill at Anheuser-Busch plants in New York, Georgia, Ohio, California, Colorado, Texas, Florida, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Missouri and Virginia.
“Without a contract by February 29, there won’t be any beer come March,” a Teamsters post on X warned.
Without a contract by February 29, there won’t be any beer come March.
Teamsters voted by 99 percent to authorize a #strike if this multibillion-dollar corporation fails to deliver a fair contract.
— Teamsters (@Teamsters) January 8, 2024
Anheuser-Busch now faces immense pressure to address union demands or else risk the first nationwide walkout in its history.
For the beer company, which is still struggling to remake its identity with its once loyal following, a strike of this magnitude may be the final straw.
