Customers at Barista Parlor’s remaining coffee bars might soon notice new wall decorations among the shops' vintage motorcycle memorabilia. In a March 5 decision, the National Labor Relations Board has ordered Barista Parlor to post a “Notice to Employees” for violating workers’ rights related to a 2023 case that reads, in part: “The National Labor Relations Board has found that we violated Federal labor law and has ordered us to post and obey this notice.” The company also owes back pay, with interest, to the four workers who initially brought the labor complaint. See the full ruling at the bottom of this post.
Andy Mumma, Barista Parlor founder and owner, says he is on a payment plan facilitated by the NLRB related to a 2025 settlement with employees.
“I agreed to a settlement because I didn't do anything wrong,” Mumma tells the Scene. “That destroyed everything — BP closed. The last check I wrote for the settlement bounced, and I couldn't pay the rest. There’s plenty of big, evil conglomerates that do terrible things to people. I’m not one of them."
Mumma says the labor dispute has destroyed the 15-year-old business, which at one point had more than six cafe locations in Nashville. He says the employees were fired for performance issues, including showing up late and not making drinks correctly. They disagree, and took their case to the NLRB, which Mumma says seems more accustomed to dealing with large corporations than small businesses.
“According to the uncontroverted allegations in the motion for default judgment, the Respondent has failed to comply with the terms of the settlement agreement,” reads the ruling, which goes on to state that Barista Parlor “has been interfering with, restraining, and coercing employees” in the exercise of rights guaranteed by the National Labor Relations Act.
New public signage is just one element of a multipart order validating four former Barista Parlor workers who first brought a case against their employer in June 2023 after being fired. The employees were terminated shortly after “raising concerted complaints and discussing working conditions” at a workplace meeting. At the time, six ousted workers and three workers who subsequently quit in solidarity shared their story in a GoFundMe campaign.
Local coffee chain cites high costs, plans to ‘refresh’ remaining East Nashville location
After a protracted labor dispute between four employees and management, the two parties reportedly reached a settlement agreement in early 2025. Mumma recently opened Moto Moda, a new pizza restaurant in Wedgewood-Houston, and closed three Barista Parlor locations around Nashville.
According to the ruling, Barista Parlor failed to comply with that settlement — notably by not offering the ousted workers their jobs back, per its terms — further escalating the labor conflict. Alleged poor communication with NLRB’s regional director and failure to follow NLRB procedure created more problems for the company, which the board officially ruled against last week.
Barista Parlor has three weeks to comply with the ordered remedies, which include: offering the ousted employees full reinstatement of their positions, computing and paying back pay with interest, posting the NLRB-mandated signage, and filing proper compliance documentation with the NLRB.
