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Baristas Form First Unionized Peet’s Coffee In United States

January 23, 2023 Kenny Stancil, Common Dreams. , , ,
In a win for workplace democracy, employees at a Peet's Coffee & Tea located in Davis, California formed the chain's first unionized shop in the United States on Friday. Workers at the café voted 14-1 to join Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1021. "We will not be the last," tweeted Peet's Workers United (PWU), which organized the winning unionization campaign. PWU is the counterpart to Starbucks Workers United (SBWU), the outfit behind dozens of successful union drives nationwide. "Solidarity, from coffee shop to coffee shop," SBWU wrote on social media ahead of Friday's vote at Peet's. After PWU won, their Starbucks allies gave them a warm "welcome to the labor movement." SBWU organizer Tyler Keeling from Lakewood, California played an instrumental role in PWU's efforts, as detailed last week in Jacobin. PWU expressed gratitude to Keeling before and after the union vote.

Starbucks Workers Head Into Their Biggest Strike Ever

December 17, 2022 Jaya Saxena, Eater. , , ,
The year of the strike is ending with a bang. Starbucks Workers United has announced that workers at over 100 stores in the U.S. are embarking on a three-day strike starting today and ending December 18. The “Double Down Strike” will affect Starbucks locations in multiple states, including the flagship Seattle Roastery, which is where Starbucks CEO and noted union antagonist Howard Schultz regularly gets his coffee. In a statement to Eater, Starbucks Workers United says “the ‘Double Down Strike’, a nationwide unfair labor practice (ULP) strike, is the longest collective action in the campaign’s history and is the latest escalation against Starbucks’ ruthless campaign of anti-union bullying.” This comes after a recent action on November 17, where over 1,000 Starbucks workers at more than 100 stores went on strike on Red Cup Day, Starbucks’s money-making “holiday” where it gives away collectible holiday cups.

Starbucks Union Workers Have A Holiday Wish

December 9, 2022 Saurav Sarkar, In These Times. , , ,
Starbucks Workers United (SBWU) has a birthday on Friday, and is holding ten rallies across the country to celebrate with the help of its parent union, Workers United. Friday marks the one-year anniversary of the winning election at the Elmwood Starbucks store in Buffalo, N.Y. on December 9, 2021, the first of the chain’s company-run locations to unionize in the country since the 1980s. The election win at Elmwood triggered a nationwide union upsurge at Starbucks. As part of the day of action, SBWU baristas are asking supporters to refrain from buying Starbucks gift cards this holiday season and show up to work stoppages and demonstrations instead. Like many gift recipients, they’ll accept cash too. “It’s a celebration of the fact that it’s been a year, and we’ve managed to unionize more than 260 stores,” barista and barista trainer CJ Toothman says of the December 9 anniversary events.

Starbucks Workers’ First National Strike

November 19, 2022 Meggie Gates, In These Times. , , , ,
On Thursday morning, thousands of Starbucks workers across the country rose at the crack of dawn — some braving bitter cold — to set up picket lines outside their stores. Over 100 Starbucks locations participated in what workers were calling the “Red Cup Rebellion” — a nationwide walkout planned by Starbucks Workers United (SBWU), the union that represents nearly 7,000 Starbucks workers across the United States. Workers who spoke to In These Times said they hoped the day of action would finally convince Starbucks to negotiate in good faith instead of doubling down on retaliation, intimidation and union busting. The strike was strategically timed. Starbucks’ annual Red Cup Day is a late fall tradition where customers can get certain beverages in reusable, limited-edition holiday cups.

‘Red Cup Rebellion’: Workers At 100+ Starbucks Locations Strike

November 17, 2022 Jake Johnson, Common Dreams. , , , ,
Thousands of unionized Starbucks workers at more than 100 locations across the United States are walking off the job Thursday to protest the coffee giant's refusal to engage in good-faith negotiations with stores that have voted to organize. Workers United, the union representing thousands of Starbucks employees, dubbed the nationwide day of action the "Red Cup Rebellion," a pro-labor counter to Starbucks' annual "Red Cup Day." As Starbucks gives away free reusable cups to customers to mark the holiday season, striking employees nationwide are handing out Starbucks Workers United-branded cups to build public awareness of the union drive and spotlight the company's aggressive and unlawful efforts to crush it.

Starbucks Workers At The Roastery Strike Against Unsafe Work Conditions

October 31, 2022 Sou Mi, Left Voice. , , , ,
New York City, New York - Workers at the New York City Starbucks Reserve Roastery in the Meatpacking District have been on strike since the beginning of last week against unsafe work conditions and the multi-billion dollar corporation’s refusal to bargain in good faith with the union for a first contract. The striking workers note how managers at one of Starbucks’s flagship stores refuse to address work conditions that are proving to be health hazards: the store had a recent outbreak of bedbugs in the break room and there has been black mold in the ice machines for months. Two workers who spoke with Left Voice under conditions of anonymity described how management instructed them to discard any ice with mold in it and carry on, without addressing the root of the problem.

Black Mold, Bed Bugs And Anti-Union Tactics

October 30, 2022 Saurav Sarkar, In These Times. , , , , , ,
Manhattan, New York - On Tuesday morning, 10 workers at Starbucks’ upscale Reserve Roastery in Manhattan, New York walked off the job, alleging unsanitary work conditions including bed bugs and black mold, as well as union busting by management. “Nobody wants to be in a building where management is lying to us, keeping us in the dark, where we clearly have a big bed bug infestation. Nobody wanted to be there,” says 27-year-old Nicole DeRose, an employee at the store who was on shift when the strike began. Starbucks Media Relations said in an email to In These Times that it became aware of a “potential pest issue” on Monday and called a pest control service that found no evidence of an infestation and “gave…the all-clear to re-open on Tuesday.”

Starbucks Has A Pin Problem

October 26, 2022 Jeff Schuhrke, In These Times. , ,
A growing number of Starbucks baristas are wearing a suicide awareness pin at work — an act of defiance and solidarity after a union leader in Buffalo, N.Y., says he was fired for wearing it. Baristas at cafes in Oklahoma, Washington, Arizona, Vermont, Kansas, New Jersey and Tennessee have been wearing the pin, according to Starbucks Workers United (SBWU). The subtle protest comes as the coffee giant continues its relentless onslaught of union busting against SBWU, which has successfully unionized some 250 cafes since December 2021. Meanwhile, the union says workers have reported more than 120 “retaliatory firings.” In a news release, SBWU says it has filed more than “80 charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on behalf of fired workers.”

Hundreds Protest As Starbucks Holds Investor Day Without Retail Workers

September 14, 2022 Sharon Zhang, Truthout. , , ,
Seattle, Washington - Hundreds of workers took to the streets in front of Starbucks’s Seattle headquarters on Tuesday as the company hosted investors for its biennial investor day, in which executives and investors discuss the company’s outlook — an event that has never once included representation from a Starbucks retail worker, the workers’ union says. Joined by other union members, workers with Starbucks Workers United are demanding that the company give them a say in its strategy and financial decisions and a place at the bargaining table for contract negotiations, which the company has been delaying. They are also asking the company to stop union-busting practices like firing pro-union employees, which it has done almost 100 times over the course of the union drive, Starbucks Workers United says.

Starbucks Worker Militancy Forces Legal Victories

September 4, 2022 Arjae Red, Workers World. , , ,
Recently, Starbucks workers achieved some significant wins in the form of National Labor Relations Board complaints and judgments against the company. Workers are waiting to see if these will materialize into meaningful changes in what is now a year-long, union-busting campaign waged by the company. The NLRB filed a complaint Aug. 24 over Starbucks’ illegal withholding of pay raises and other benefits from workers who were unionized or in the process of organizing.  Since the beginning of the union drive, Starbucks has been announcing a number of perks for workers who decide not to unionize, including a pay raise which took effect Aug. 1.

This Labor Day, Starbucks Workers To Host Pro-Union ‘Sip-Ins’ Across The US

September 2, 2022 Saurav Sarkar, In These Times. , , ,
This Labor Day weekend, Starbucks workers across the country will be rolling out the red carpet to their supporters. About 100 of the coffee chain’s stores are set to hold “sip-ins” from Friday, Sept. 2 to Monday, Sept. 5. Sip-ins are loosely modeled after sit-ins, and mark designated times when supporters of a store are asked to come in, order low-priced drinks or water, and leave big tips. The events provide an opportunity for baristas and their supporters to engage in conversation about labor conditions and build community. “I’m a little nervous, but we’re excited,” said Samantha Shields, a 21-year-old barista at a Starbucks store in Washington, D.C. Her store filed to unionize in late August and is the first to organize in the city.

These Starbucks Workers Demanded Fair Pay, Then Were Accused Of Kidnapping Their Boss

August 31, 2022 Saurav Sarkar, In These Times. , , ,
Anderson, South Carolina - On August 1, Melissa Morris, a manager of a Starbucks location in Anderson, South Carolina, accused unionized workers at her store of kidnapping and assaulting her during her first week on the job. The shocking accusation resulted from workers holding a “march on the boss” to demand that they benefit from the same pay raise the company was providing to non-union stores, and, as a result, 11 workers have been suspended while the company and police investigate the issue. These workers call the allegations “ridiculous” and part of the company’s broader anti-union campaign.

Overcoming Fear And Apathy When Unionizing

August 30, 2022 Gabriela Calugay-Casuga, Rabble.ca. , , , ,
Gains are being made in the unionizing effort at different Starbucks locations across Canada after a flurry of activity in the U.S. that saw more than 200 Starbucks locations join unions this year. A handful of stores in B.C. and Alberta are joining the United Steelworkers (USW) union to win better working conditions. According to a release by the USW, Starbucks workers are joining in hopes of winning higher wages, more paid hours to avoid understaffing and better health and safety measures. In June, only one Starbucks location in Canada was unionized, according to Canadaland. Now, the USW says they represent Starbucks workers in Calgary, A.B., and Victoria, Surrey and Langley in B.C.

Scenes From A Summer Of Strikes In A South Carolina Starbucks

August 23, 2022 Aneil Tripathi, Labor Notes. , , , ,
Since the Starbucks Workers United campaign launched last fall, workers have won union authorization elections at 220 stores, and struck at least 60. The company has retaliated harshly—closing some stores, firing dozens of union leaders, claiming interference by the National Labor Relations Board, and calling for a moratorium on mail-in elections. Starbucks also barred union stores from receiving long-awaited benefits to be implemented August 1, provoking several strikes. Jonah Furman from Labor Notes spoke with Tripathi about the joys of the picket line, Starbucks’ retaliation, and how a store manager got so rattled by a collective action that she accused the workers of kidnapping her.

Minneapolis: Recently Unionized Starbucks Workers On Two-day Strike

August 20, 2022 Ellie Zimmerman, Unicorn Riot. , , , ,
Minneapolis, Minnesota – The corner of 47th Street and Cedar Avenue in Minneapolis was quiet for the first time after spirited drumming and chants of, “What’s disgusting? Union busting!” filled the air from July 31-August 1. Employees of the Cedar Avenue Starbucks had returned to work after a two-day strike in protest of the company’s refusal to bargain with the newly formed union, as well as what the workers say are backhanded attempts to undermine union efforts. Baristas and shift supervisors united to raise grievances against the manager of the location and Starbucks corporate for difficult working conditions and low pay. In a letter posted on the front door of the store, workers addressed their manager: Direction only from the top is an unjust system we refuse to participate in. You are complicit in that system.
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