100 Thieves content creator Will Neff has announced he will no longer be partnering with HelloFresh after learning about the company’s working conditions and stance on worker unionization. Neff tweeted yesterday evening saying he was previously unaware of the issues HelloFresh workers are facing and will no longer be partnering with the meal kit brand after learning of the situation.
In recent months, HelloFresh workers across the U.S. have been organizing in an attempt to become the first-ever meal kit delivery labor union. But according to federal documents, HelloFresh is spending thousands a day on anti-union consultants, as spotted by the Huffington Post.
“They are trying to union bust and are not being very good to their workers,” Neff added.
NPR reported HelloFresh has seen a 70 percent increase in business since the pandemic. But workers claim that the company is not adequately addressing workplace safety or compensating workers for injuries while at work.
In a statement to NPR, HelloFresh said it “respects each employee’s right to choose or refuse union membership and is working on ways to improve health and safety conditions,” according to NPR’s Matt Bloom.
Streamer Nick “nmplol” Polom said Neff’s rejection of HelloFresh is a big deal because many other Twitch partners, such as Sodapoppin and PaymoneyWubby, promote the company on their Twitch channels with affiliate codes.
“Everyone and their mom has been picked up by them,” Polom wrote.
Neff’s stance on HelloFresh immediately sparked debate. Some criticized him for continuing to stream on Twitch, a platform owned by Amazon. Amazon has historically encouraged managers to prevent union organizing. In a leaked video from 2018, the company said “we do not believe unions are in the best interest of our customers, our shareholders, or most importantly, our associates.”
Others, however, applauded Neff’s view on HelloFresh. Twitch partner Kaceytron wrote that she would be cancelling her HelloFresh subscription, and the People for Bernie Sanders Twitter account (independent from the candidate’s campaigns) thanked Neff for speaking out.
Neff isn’t the only content creator who has recently stopped a HelloFresh partnership. Political Twitch streamer and friend of Neff’s Hasan Piker explained the H3H3 Leftovers podcast, which he co-hosts with Ethan Klein, cut ties with HelloFresh because the two believed the company was union busting.
