Hartford Business Journal

4 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | SEPTEMBER 2, 2024 What's Trending Union activity on the rise in CT number of workers represented by unions peaked at 295,000 in 2017. Nationally, union membership was flat in 2023 at 10%, with 14.4 million workers belonging to a union, according to BLS. Staff at Hearst Connecticut Media Group, publisher of eight daily and 13 weekly newspapers around the state, recently announced they are working to form a union. By Greg Bordonaro gbordonaro@hartfordbusiness.com E mployees at two more Connecticut Starbucks loca- tions recently voted unionize, as the state overall experiences an uptick in unionization activity. Baristas at the Starbucks on Litchfield Turnpike in Woodbridge and Dixwell Avenue in Hamden voted to join the Starbucks Workers United union, which said it has now organized more than 10,500 baristas at 480-plus stores nationwide since 2021. A Starbucks in West Hartford was the first in the state to unionize in 2022. Now, five of the Seattle-based coffee chain's Connecticut locations are represented by unions. Baristas say they are seeking better wages, racial and gender equity and fair schedules. Overall, union activity in Connecticut has been on the rise in recent years. In 2023, 15.9% of employed residents in the state were union members, while 16.9% were represented by unions, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That was up from 14.2% and 15.4%, respectively, in 2022. There were 272,000 Connecticut workers represented by unions in 2023, the highest number since 2020, BLS data shows. Over the last decade, the FuelCell Energy, facing possible Nasdaq delisting, announces reverse stock split FuelCell Energy's new 14-megawatt fuel cell park in Derby. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO By Andrew Larson alarson@hartfordbusiness.com D anbury-based FuelCell Energy Inc. announced it's planning a reverse stock split as the company faces delisting from the Nasdaq exchange due to its stock price falling below $1. The company, which produces hydrogen fuel cells that generate electricity and release hot water as a byproduct, notified shareholders of the potential delisting on June 6. FuelCell has until the end of November to get its stock price above $1 to prevent delisting. The company plans to hold a special stockholder meeting on Oct. 31, for a vote on the proposed reverse stock split. Jeffrey Osborne, managing director at TD Cowen and an analyst who covers FuelCell, said that while reverse stock splits tend to be viewed negatively, he believes it will allow the company to regain Nasdaq compliance. "Generally reverse stock splits are viewed negatively by investors as it is a sign of a fundamental weakness at any company needing to undertake them," Osborne said. "Historically special shareholding meetings, which they have called, approve the reverse split proposed, so I do not see an issue in regaining compliance by November." FuelCell's stock traded below 50 cents per share during most of August, and hasn't traded above $1 since April 18. Its highest stock price over the last year was $1.84 in December 2023. Reverse stock splits are done to increase a share price by consoli- dating the number of existing shares of stock into fewer shares. FuelCell issued the following statement on the stock split: "The primary reason for pursuing a reverse split would be to increase FuelCell Energy's share price to comply with the minimum bid price required by the NASDAQ Global Select Market. A higher share price can also make the stock more attrac- tive to a broader range of investors, especially institutional investors who often have minimum price thresholds for investments. FuelCell Energy continues to advance its strategy and commercialization efforts, navigating the challenges that emerged for our sector over the past year of slower federal clean energy incentive policy deployment and an elevated interest rate environment." FuelCell, a closely-watched Connecticut company that received significant state funding and was on the brink of bankruptcy in 2019, also faced a potential Nasdaq delisting in late 2012, but avoided it. FuelCell, in June of this year, reported that it lost $37.7 million in the second quarter of 2024, compared to a $33.9 million loss in the year-ago period. The company's cash balance was $313.2 million as of April 30, compared to $403.3 million as of Oct. 31, 2023. Last November, FuelCell celebrated the opening of a 14 megawatt fuel cell park in Derby, the second largest in North America. It also operates the largest fuel cell park in North America, located in Bridgeport. In April, FuelCell closed on a project debt-financing deal with Liberty Bank and the Connecticut Green Bank for another fuel cell project in Derby. The net funding to the company totaled about $11.6 million. Last year, UConn's Board of Trustees approved spending $6.5 million for the company to install a hydrogen fuel cell at the school's Inno- vation Partnership Building in Storrs. Fuel cell companies are known as "serial capital raisers" as they develop and commercialize competitive tech- nologies in a fast-moving industry. In May 2023, FuelCell said it secured $87 million in financing to diversify its capital base, repay existing debt and accelerate commer- cialization of its hydrogen fuel cell technologies. 300K 250K 200K 150K 100K TOTAL WORKERS NO. OF CT WORKERS REPRESENTED BY UNIONS Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 $2 $1.50 $1 $.50 0 8/23 9/23 10/23 11/23 12/23 1/24 2/24 3/24 4/24 5/24 6/24 7/24 8/24 FUELCELL ENERGY'S STOCK PRICE DURING PAST 12 MONTHS STOCK PRICE

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