The Starbucks Workers United Union saw more than 21 Starbucks stores file a petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) with the intention to join the union. That adds up to 400 new workers ready to join the Starbucks Union drive. Starbucks has been very overtly steadfast in its stance against the unionization of its workforce in a similar way to SpaceX and Tesla, if not as vocal, but the tide seems to be turning against them as more workers speak up. The Starbucks Union drive update was the largest single-day filing the union has seen in recent times. The previous record stood at 14 stores when we last heard of these efforts back in Jan 2022. The Starbucks NLRB petitions have been a long time coming as workers have frequently complained about the poor working conditions, resource shortages, and other inconveniences that add up to a very strained work life at the popular coffee chain.
Image: Starbucks
Starbucks Workers United: What Is the Starbucks Union?
The Starbucks Union has had a rocky start in setting up a proper unionized force for employees of Starbucks for years now. In 2021, workers of a Starbucks store in Buffalo, New York came together and became one of the first official voices to form a union at Starbucks. Since then, stores across the country have been showing their support for the Starbucks Workers United Union in hopes that it will culminate into an actual contract, but there have been no agreements signed with the company so far. The Starbucks Union makes up a part of the much larger Workers United force in the U.S., an organization that represents workers across industries from textile factories to manufacturing plants, making it a reliable force for workers to turn to in times of need.
“Building a union across all of the corporate stores in the United States will give us a real voice over our jobs and legal protections that non-union workers do not have. We will have the right to negotiate a union contract and have a real voice in setting organization policies, rights on the job, health and safety conditions, protections from unfair firings or unfair discipline, seniority rights, leaves of absence rights, benefits, wages, etc. We can turn Starbucks into a place where workers can have sustainable careers and be rewarded for their years of hard work.”
—Starbucks Workers United website
According to NPR, way back in the 1980s, some of the Starbucks workers found support from the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union but that covered only a small sub-section of the workers and didn’t cause major conflict with Starbucks as a whole. We’re finally seeing a more formal and united Starbucks Union drive take place this time, and with the numbers backing the movement, it may soon be time for the company to finally listen to what the workers are asking for.
Are Starbucks Stores Joining the Starbucks Workers United Now?
The current Starbucks Union drive hasn’t picked up steam as a result of any particular violation or incident but appears to be a result of more and more workers joining the efforts to present Starbucks with a united front. The Starbucks Workers United presented a letter addressed to the CEO of Starbucks, Laxman Narasimhan, stating “Though we work at different stores, we are united through our shared experiences and in our demand for higher wages, fair and consistent scheduling, improved benefits, and a safe and dignified workplace.”
The letter goes on to express that the company has been presenting them with “higher and higher expectations” without giving them the necessary tools to meet them. “Across the country management is cutting hours, writing inconsistent and unreliable schedules, and placing more and more work on fewer and fewer partners. Starbucks’ profit-driven behavior makes doing our jobs impossible,” they state, demanding dignity, fair pay, and a voice at the table among other things. The unionization efforts appear to include full-time and part-time workers collectively in an effort to stand against the company and have Starbucks Workers United represent their interests.
The 21 stores joining the Starbucks Workers United Union add to the 396 stores that have already embraced the movement. Speaking to The Hill, a spokesperson from Starbucks, Andrew Tull, stated that as a company, they “respect the rights of partners to organize and reaffirm our aim to negotiate first contracts for represented stores this year.” According to the same account, Starbucks reportedly invested 20 percent of profits into worker wages and resources in 2023 and raised the hourly compensations by 50 percent from 2020. This may very well be accurate, but for the employees, the numbers still remain insufficient and do little to address their full gamut of concerns.
Image: Starbucks
What About the Starbucks Labor Law Violations?
Time and again, we’ve heard of Starbucks labor law violations that infringed on the legal rights of their workers and impaired their quality of life. Back in November last year, there were approximately 32 complaints in New York that reported that the company was not complying with the state’s Fair Workweek law. This labor law required employers to provide 14-day shift notices and regular work schedules in advance, as well as extra pay when employees had to agree to shift changes.
These reports were particularly of issue due to the working conditions over holiday events and promotional events like the “Red Cup day” where there was peak traffic at every single Starbucks outlet. Stores found themselves drastically understaffed trying to keep up with the customers. The options of mobile orders further racked up the work as the staff fought to keep up. This left workers frustrated, causing them to demand better working conditions and fair pay for their time.
Starbucks vs. NLRB—No End In Sight to The Conflict
It’s no surprise that Starbucks is a popular brand and has a loyal customer base regardless of what it does and who it supports, but there are issues that workers end up having to face that could be better resolved by a Starbucks union. This, however, isn’t the only Starbucks-NLRB conflict in the works right now. While the company has stated that they don’t stand against their “partners” unionizing, they have often been caught in anti-union activities. Less than a month ago, a U.S. Supreme Court case was reported where Starbucks was accused of firing Memphis workers who had shown union support. The company has since rehired the workers and denied any wrongdoings according to Reuters, but the outcome of the court case remains undecided.
The results of the Starbucks NLRB case could set the standard for how such cases are handled in the future and while the NLRB appears committed to worker rights, Starbucks states that it, in turn, is seeking “to level the playing field for all U.S. employers by ensuring that a single standard is applied.” The report also stated that there are at least five other similar cases between Starbucks and different stores right now.
While Starbucks continues on its path towards discounting the NLRB as an “unconstitutional” authority, the Starbucks Workers United appears to be focusing its energy on gathering more support for its cause and challenging the company to join them at the discussion table, see them as a legitimate force, and negotiate the terms and conditions of the work that is done at each and every store. Starbucks Workers United has faced some legal troubles with Starbucks over political standing already, so it’s difficult to see the company letting go of the matter and accepting the union as is. With the number of workers joining in support though, the company may just have to try.
