Starbucks workers strike could reach hundreds of stores by Christmas Eve | Starbucks
Workers at Starbucks stores in three cities plan to go on strike on Friday after a union representing more than 11,000 baristas in the United States said it had made little progress with the giant coffee chain’s owners on wages and conditions.
Starting in Los Angeles, Chicago and Seattle, the walkout is scheduled to spread every day and, under a deal, reach hundreds of stores by Christmas Eve.
The strike comes at a time when workers at online giant Amazon have been affected by a workers’ strike.
The Starbucks Workers Union, the union that has organized workers at 535 company-owned stores in the United States since 2021, said Starbucks had failed to fulfill its pledge to meet to reach an agreement this year.
“United Baristas know their value, and they will not accept any proposal that does not treat them as true partners,” said Lynn Fox, president of United Workers.
“In a year in which Starbucks invested many millions in top executive talent, it failed to provide the baristas who make its company run with a viable economic proposition.” Fatima Al-Hajboudi saidStarbucks barista and bargain representative.
The union noted that Starbucks’ new chairman and CEO, Brian Nicol, could make more than $100 million in his first year, but the company proposed a salary deal with no new pay increases for unionized servers and a 1.5% raise in the coming years.
But Starbucks said it already offers wages and benefits — including free college tuition and paid family leave — of $30 an hour to baristas who work at least 20 hours a week.
He added: “We are ready to continue negotiations to reach agreements.” “We need the union back to the table,” Starbucks said in a statement.
In November 2023, Starbucks workers at more than 200 stores walked out on Red Cup Day, when the company distributed reusable cups. Workers also went on strike in June 2023 when some stores banned Pride Month displays.
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Baristas said the staffing shortage is due in part to the algorithm Starbucks uses to assign store workers, combined with customers placing complex orders and the need to juggle in-person, drive-thru, mobile and delivery orders, which has made their job more difficult.
About 8% of Starbucks customers wait between 15 and 30 minutes for their order, according to a The study was cited by Bloomberg earlier this yearcompared to minimum wait times in 2019.