By Daniel Wiessner

(Reuters) – U.S. labor board prosecutors have determined that a union’s claims that Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) illegally refused to offer raises to staff at a Michigan restaurant after they became the primary and only employees of the fast-casual chain to unionize have merit.

The National Labor Relations Board’s general counsel will issue a proper criticism against Chipotle unless it settles the claims by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, NLRB spokeswoman Kayla Blado said on Monday.

Employees on the Lansing, Michigan, restaurant voted 11-3 to hitch the Teamsters in 2022, but have yet to secure a contract with Chipotle. The union in a criticism filed last yr said Chipotle withheld raises from the shop’s employees by falsely claiming that they weren’t eligible for pay bumps because they’d unionized.

Chipotle and lawyers for the Teamsters didn’t immediately reply to requests for comment.

The corporate last yr agreed to pay $240,000 to settle a separate NLRB case claiming it illegally shuttered an Augusta, Maine, restaurant in response to a union campaign there. Chipotle denied wrongdoing but in addition agreed to post notices about staff’ legal rights at 40 stores throughout Latest England.

If the final counsel issues a criticism within the Michigan case, it’s going to be heard first by an administrative judge after which by the five-member board appointed by the president, whose decisions will be appealed to federal appeals courts.

The NLRB is facing a series of lawsuits, including not less than five filed this month, claiming that its in-house enforcement proceedings violate the U.S. Structure.

Several firms, including rocket maker SpaceX and pipeline operator Energy Transfer, have sued the agency after being hit with complaints alleging illegal labor practices.

(Reporting by Daniel Wiessner in Albany, Latest York, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Bill Berkrot)