Starbucks employees strike in at least 17 states amid unionisation efforts in the US

Over 55 distinct strikes by Starbucks employees have taken place in at least 17 different US states in recent months due to the company's vigorous opposition to a wave of unionisation.

As reported by the Guardian,Starbuckshas lost more than $375,000 as a result of the strikes, according to an estimate by Starbucks Workers United. To assist Starbucks employees during their strikes, the union established a $1 million strike fund in June 2022. Additional relief funds have also been established for strikes and to assist employees who have lost their employment.

The National Labor Relations Board is currently investigating hundreds of allegations of misconduct by Starbucks related to the union campaign, including claims of closing stores to dismantle unions, firing employees, and intimidating and threatening workers to prevent them fromunionising.

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Workers at the Glencoe Crossing branch of Starbucks on strike. Photo credits: Twitter

Employees claim that over 75 workers have been fired in retaliation for union organising this year. All claims have been refuted by Starbucks.

Numerous Starbucks locations are presently awaiting the results of their election polls, but more than 200 locations across the US have already won their union votes.

Sam Amato worked for Starbucks in Buffalo, New York, for 13 years before he was fired on August 5 for his ardent support of unionisation at his store and other Starbucks stores across the country.

As the first Starbucks stores opened in the US and his own store won its union election in early 2022, he first got active in union organising efforts in the Buffalo region in August 2021.

Amato and his coworkers were sent to other locations in June while their own store underwent refurbishment.

Amato claimed that during this time, the store manager closely monitored employees through written warnings and disciplinary actions.

“My store manager pulled me aside and said that due to an incident when I closed the lobby I was being separated,” said Amato. “Any questions I asked, my manager said they were unable to answer and that I would have to call Starbucks corporate to get an answer.”

He explained that there had been a lot of store manager turnover throughout the union organising campaigns in the Buffalo region, along with numerous worker firings and resignations that led to understaffing concerns, which led to the lobby being closed down and operating only the drive-thru on July 3.

His dismissal surprised several coworkers and other union members, who immediately started an ongoing walkout at the Buffalo Starbucks branch to seek his reinstatement.

“I was fired because I’m a union leader and I was very vocal about it,” said Amato. “Starbucks pretends to be an ally and so progressive but they are the opposite and I genuinely have been shocked at how low they’re willing to go.”

Despite pleas from unionised workers to make these changes for them while they press for the firm to negotiate a first contract with the unionised locations, Starbucks has delayed the new pay rises and perks for these workers despite the wave of union elections at the corporation.

A unionised Starbucks location in Jacksonville, Florida, went on strike for one day on August 1 to demand that they be given the new pay raises and benefits on the same day they were made available throughout the firm.

“In the last week of July, I think people in my store were really starting to get really aggravated and pissed off that we weren’t receiving the raises,” said Mason Boykin, a Starbucks worker at the store.

Boykin claimed that when their store unionised, employees had their schedules altered and their hourly pay decreased, which they claim to be unfair labour practises.

“As far as striking goes, I think unionized stores recognize that the only way we’re going to receive what we’re worth is by uniting together and demanding it and that’s through striking,” added Boykin.

While one Boston Starbucks location has been on an indefinite strike since mid-July in protest of allegations of threats and retaliation against employees, several Starbucks locations in Massachusetts also staged a one-day strike over the wage and benefits issue, and two locations have kept up the strike.

As reported by the Guardian, a spokesperson for Starbucks said in an email: “We currently have strikes happening outside store locations in specific locations in the US. Starbucks has great partners and we value their contributions. We respect our partners’ right to engage in any legally protected activity or protest without retaliation.”

(With inputs from the Guardian)

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