Starbucks employees hold placards and picket in Burbank, California, on Friday. Frederick J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images Hide caption
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Frederick J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images
Starbucks workers will walk off the job at hundreds of stores in dozens of cities on Tuesday, the last scheduled day of what they call a “pre-Christmas strike,” according to the union.
“Starbucks baristas at over 300 stores have quit their jobs to demand fair contracts from Starbucks nationwide,” Starbucks Workers United (SBU) wrote in an Instagram post. It was billed as the largest unfair labor practice strike. History of coffee chains.
The union said the strike was in response to Starbucks backtracking on its promise to negotiate a “fundamental framework” for resolving outstanding collective bargaining and unfair labor practice lawsuits by the end of the year. There is.
“Our Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) strike began Friday morning and will escalate daily through Christmas Eve…unless Starbucks honors our commitment to work towards a fundamental framework,” the company said last week. Ta.
The strike began Friday in three cities: Los Angeles, Seattle and Chicago.
The list of participating stores has expanded daily since then and now includes Boston, Buffalo, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Portland, Seattle, and San Jose.
Starbucks announced Monday that about 60 stores nationwide were closed due to the strike, but stressed that the “overwhelming majority” of its more than 10,000 U.S. stores remain unaffected. Some stores that were closed over the weekend have already reopened.
“Public conversations may be missing important context that the vast majority (97% to 99%) of our stores remain open and serving customers, and our overall business “We expect the impact to be very limited,” said Executive Vice President Sarah Kelly. statement.
The union is calling on customers to boycott Starbucks stores during the strike and show support for workers by showing up on picket lines.
Why baristas are attracting attention
SWU first unionized in 2021 and represents approximately 10,000 employees at 535 U.S. stores. Starbucks reached a milestone in February when it announced it would work with the union to reach a collective bargaining agreement and resolve the lawsuit by the end of the year.
But last week, with the situation still unresolved ahead of the final bargaining session scheduled for 2024, a whopping 98% of union members “protested hundreds of unresolved unfair labor practice charges”. , voted to authorize a strike “to win a strong agreement.” This is the basic framework for labor union contracts. ”
The union acknowledged that the two sides had engaged in “hundreds of hours of negotiations” and “dozens of tentative agreements” in recent months.
However, hundreds of complaints accusing Starbucks of unfair labor practices, including retaliatory termination, remain unresolved, and more than $100 million in legal liability remains unpaid, the newspaper said. The company also said it “has not yet put a comprehensive economic package on the negotiating table.”
People hold placards outside a closed Starbucks as workers go on strike in New York City on Monday. Adam Gray/Getty Images North America Hide Caption
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Adam Gray/Getty Images North America
Starbucks’ latest proposal included no immediate wage increases for union baristas and a guarantee of only 1.5% future wage increases. The union criticized this as “insulting”, especially compared to the new CEO’s pay, which took over in September.
“This year, Starbucks invested $113 million in CEO Brian Nicol’s compensation package while barista wages have not kept pace with inflation costs,” the paper said. “Workers have always struggled to qualify for benefits and get the time they need to pay their bills. Starbucks needs to invest in the workers who run its stores.”
Ruby Walters, who works at a Starbucks store in Columbus, told member station WOSU from the picket line over the weekend that most employees “have a very similar experience where the company not only takes something home but also doesn’t give them the full resources they need.” “I have a lot of experience,” he said. Improving their lives, but literally while working. ”
“So, as far as I’m concerned, it’s not just us that we’re fighting for,” Walters added. “This is for every Starbucks employee across the country.”
what starbucks is saying
Mr. Kelly, the Starbucks executive, dismissed the union’s proposal as unrealistic, saying it amounted to an immediate 64% increase in the hourly minimum wage and a 77% increase over three years.
“These proposals are not sustainable, especially since the continued investments we make across our benefits set us apart as an employer and make us proud to work for Starbucks.” Especially if it’s a real thing,” she said.
According to Starbucks, these benefits include medical benefits, free college tuition, paid family leave, stock grants, and more, with an average wage and benefits of at least 20 hours per hour. He added that for most baristas who work over $30 an hour, that’s the equivalent of an average wage of $30 an hour. week.
The union is demanding a base wage of at least $20 an hour for all baristas, along with 5% annual raises and cost-of-living adjustments, participation in a Starbucks-sponsored retirement plan, more consistent schedules, and paid time off. They are calling for the strengthening of medical facilities and the enhancement of medical care. Other initiatives.
The final stage of the four-day strike calls for Starbucks to come up with a “serious economic offer at the bargaining table.”
The company said the union had “prematurely ended” the latest round of negotiations and is asking for a return to the union.
“The union chose to withdraw from negotiations last week,” Kelly said. “When the union comes back to the bargaining table, we are ready to continue bargaining.”
