Do you enjoy Starbucks holiday drinks? You might not receive them this week.
Starbucks Workers United declared that baristas in three major markets—Chicago, Los Angeles, and Seattle—will go on strike beginning Friday.
According to the union, the action is a reaction to the coffee chain’s inability to settle hundreds of unresolved unfair labor practice allegations and to present reasonable economic offers at the negotiating table.
According to its website, the union, which began organizing in 2021, represents around 10,500 union workers and 525 union outlets. According to the Associated Press, Starbucks owns around 10,000 locations in the United States.
The group stated onX that although Starbucks has made public promises since February that they plan to conclude contracts by the end of the year, they have not yet offered workers a meaningful economic proposition. Starbucks promised a 1.5% salary raise in subsequent years and no immediate pay boost for union baristas this week, less than two weeks before their end-of-year deadline.
According to the group, unless Starbucks fulfills our commitment to work towards a core framework, baristas will begin a five-day strike that could expand to other cities by Christmas Eve. The strikes will begin on Friday morning.
Starbucks, which has its headquarters in Seattle, Washington, informed NBC News that its shop operations had not been significantly impacted.
“The vast majority of our US stores are still open and serving customers as usual, but we are aware of disruption at a small handful of stores,” the business stated.
The union stated in a news release on Tuesday that although it and Starbucks had previously discussed a course of action earlier this year and had reached dozens of tentative agreements, Starbucks has not yet presented a complete economic package for negotiation.
Until it completes a fair contract that invests in its employees, Starbucks will not be able to recover as a business. I currently earn $16.50 per hour. Meanwhile, Silvia Baldwin, a Philadelphia barista and negotiation delegate, claimed in a statement that Brian Niccol, the CEO of Starbucks, receives a remuneration package of $57,000 per hour.
The business recently revealed that I will only receive a 2.5% rise next year, or $0.40 per hour—hardly anything. Every week, one Starbucks drink is consumed. She went on to say that Starbucks must make investments in the baristas who manage the company.
According to a Starbucks representative, Workers United representatives abruptly concluded this week’s bargaining session.
Starbucks claimed to provide best-in-class benefits like health insurance, college tuition, paid family leave, and business stock awards, in addition to competitive average salary of more than $18 per hour.
According to Workers United’s suggestions, hourly partners’ minimum wages should be raised by 64% immediately and by 77% over the course of a three-year contract. According to the corporation, this is not sustainable.
Starbucks stated that it is prepared to carry on with the talks.
In the midst of the holiday delivery crunch, the Teamsters union announced strikes at multiple Amazon delivery facilities on Thursday.
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