Following the allegations of sexism and misconduct within the beer industry in 2021, a number of organizations and activists have attempted to hold breweries and beer businesses accountable. One is Punks with Purpose, a group founded by a cohort of former and current BrewDog employees (and assisted by the Industrial Workers of the World union) with the aim of tackling toxic workplace culture, both in general and at the brewery specifically.
On June 9, the organization published an open letter which revealed a culture of harassment, bullying, and abuse at BrewDog. It demanded organizational change, beginning at the top with CEO and co-founder James Watt. The result was a shockwave-inducing moment in British craft beer that generated headlines across national media outlets, and which has since seen the brewery publicly apologize and make initial commitments to change. (Punks with Purpose says it will continue to follow and engage with those efforts to ensure they’re not just lip-service.)
As one of Punks with Purpose’s original signatories, brewer Charlotte Cook was motivated in part by her own negative experiences with the Scottish brewery. After she received bullying and sexist comments in response to a post on BrewDog’s Facebook page, she took her complaints to HR, only to be met with inaction. In her work with Punks with Purpose, she has continued to push for acknowledgement, apology, and commitments to change, appearing on BBC radio shows like “Woman’s Hour” and “The Food Programme” to share that message, despite facing harassment as a result. “If we let the momentum drop, if we let the pressure drop, then things are gonna go back to how they were, and that’s what we need to avoid,” she recently said on the GBH podcast.
Now the head brewer at South London’s Coalition Brewing, Cook is nudging the industry towards progress in another capacity. Her recent Master of Science thesis—on the economic viability of high dry-hopping rates—has the sustainability and future of the industry at its heart. That should come as no surprise from someone whose dedication, across the board, is making beer better than it was before.
Words,Claire Bullen