Mary Meisenzahl
Tue, December 21, 2021
REUTERS/Lindsay DeDario
Starbucks workers in Buffalo, New York voted for the chain's first US union on Thursday.
Now workers at other locations are pushing for union votes, according to reports.
So far there are reported campaigns in Arizona, Boston, New York, and Seattle.
Starbucks officially has its first unionized company-owned US store in Buffalo, New York, and the successful campaign is inspiring baristas across the country to organize their own stores.
The Elmwood location in Buffalo was one of three that were voting on a unionization drive over the last few weeks. It was the only store that definitively voted in favor of the union so far. The unionization vote failed to pass at a second location by a vote of 12 to eight, though a lawyer for the union indicated a possible future challenge over votes he says were not counted. At the third location, yes votes were leading 15 to nine, but the NLRB was unable to call the election because of ballots challenged by both parties.
Here are some other locations where Starbucks workers are reported to be organizing unions.
Mesa, Arizona
Starbucks barista.REUTERS/Mike Blake
Six employees at a store in Mesa, Arizona announced plans to organize their Starbucks location in mid-November. The workers wrote a letter to Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson.
"We are organizing a union because we feel that this is the best way to contribute meaningfully to our partnership with the company," workers wrote in the letter. This location appears to still be in the early stages of the organizing process.
Buffalo, New York
REUTERS/Lindsay DeDario
Workers at three more Buffalo stores have filed paperwork to hold their own votes. which have not yet been scheduled. The stores are located in Buffalo suburbs of Cheektowaga, Amherst, and Depew. The NLRB is currently reviewing workers' petitions for elections and testimony from recent hearings before it will make a decision on holding elections, WIVB reported.
Boston
REUTERS/Mark Makela
Workers at two Boston area stores, in Allston and Brookline, announced plans to organize unions at their locations on December 13. They are working with the Workers United Labor Union, the same organization that workers in Buffalo organized with. So far, 36 out of 47 workers at the two locations have signed cards showing their intent to form a union, organizing members told WGBH.
"Buffalo is that first domino, and we hope that the Coolidge Corner and Allston stores can be the next domino here in Boston," Kylah Clay, a member of the organizing committee, told WGBH. The Boston workers cited stores in Buffalo and Arizona as part of the inspiration behind their drives.
Seattle
Ted S. Warren/AP
Starbucks workers at a location in Seattle filed to hold a union vote with the NLRB on December 20, The Seattle Times Reported.
"We do not see our desire to unionize as a reaction to specific policies, events, or changes, but rather a commitment to growing the company and the quality of our work. We see unionizing as a fundamental and necessary way to participate in Starbucks and its future as partners," four organizing workers wrote in a public letter to CEO Kevin Johnson.
Starbucks started in Seattle 50 years ago and is still headquartered in the West Coast city.
"Starbucks started here in Seattle 50 years ago and we intend to make the next 50 even greater with a union," workers wrote in the letter.
Tue, December 21, 2021
(Bloomberg) -- Workers at a Starbucks Corp. store in Seattle, the coffee giant’s hometown, say they aim to unionize, adding momentum to the organizing efforts at the chain.
“We believe that partnership comes with a weight and responsibility on all sides, one that can only be fulfilled with equal power and accountability,” the workers said in a letter to Chief Executive Officer Kevin Johnson. “We are organizing a union because we believe the best way to uphold our end of the partnership is by creating a voice for ourselves.”
A Starbucks representative pointed to a recent letter by Rossann Williams, the coffee chain’s executive vice president for North America, saying that the company values working directly with its employees. “From the beginning, we’ve been clear in our belief that we do not want a union between us as partners, and that conviction has not changed,” Williams said.
Earlier this month, Starbucks employees successfully voted to unionize a store in Buffalo, New York -- marking the company’s first union location. Attempts to organize are being made at a handful of other locations. The company has agreed to negotiate with newly formed union.
Starbucks shares rose 1.3% at 10:02 a.m. Tuesday in New York.
Starbucks takes hard line on unions, insists will ‘come to the table’ with Buffalo workers
Starbucks (SBUX) on Monday reiterated its tough stance against unionizing, saying that while the movement was not in the best interests of its workforce, it would “bargain in good faith” with one location that voted to organize.
Recently, partners at a store in Buffalo scored a big win after voting to form the coffee giant's first ever union. On Friday, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) confirmed the vote, according to an internal memo obtained by Yahoo Finance. Yet the Seattle-based coffee chain remains opposed to the effort.
“From the beginning, we’ve been clear in our belief that we do not want a union between us as partners, and that conviction has not changed,” Rossann Williams, Starbucks EVP and president of U.S. Retail and Canada wrote to all U.S. partners, which Starbucks call its employees.
She added that: “We have also said that we respect the legal process,” insisting the company would "bargain in good faith with the union that represents partners in the one Buffalo store that voted in favor of union representation. Our hope is that union representatives also come to the table with mutual good faith, respect and positive intent."
The 50-year-old company actively lobbied against the Buffalo effort, saying it's more than 8,000 company-owned U.S. stores operate best when it works directly with its employees.
Voting wrapped up last week, where a second cafe narrowly rejected the measure, and a third coffee shop is still waiting on results amid a number of challenges to individual ballots.
Starbucks Workers United, a union representing the workers, filed objections with the NLRB for two elections on Thursday. Union organizers claim that Starbucks “dramatically” and “negatively” affected the results of the vote at the second cafe store.
Meanwhile, union representatives of the Buffalo Starbucks location will begin to negotiate a contract for better wages, benefits and working conditions.
It’s unclear when the results for the third store will be finalized. However, the Starbucks union movement has now spread to Arizona and Boston, as workers at two locations in the city are taking up their effort to form a union.
Starbucks to ‘stay true to Mission and Values'
The upscale coffee giant is one of many companies confronting a pandemic-era reckoning with a stressed out and underpaid workforce, and has moved to address quality of work and pay issues.
In late October, Starbucks announced its plans to increase all U.S. hourly wages to at least $15 an hour, up from the current $12 rate, by the summer of 2022. This will bring the average pay for all U.S. Starbucks’ hourly partners to nearly $17 per an hour.
The memo sent Monday morning emphasizes the company’s desire to remain directly connected with its partners.
“We stand for fairness and equity for our partners. We stand for growing and learning together," executives wrote.
"We stand for the Starbucks Experience, and building a company together where partners and the business can thrive and share success. Most importantly, we always stand together as one Starbucks. Always,” the letter said.
Shares of Starbucks have been mixed, losing ground recently but up 5.2% year-to-date. Analysts continue to view the vote as neutral to the coffee giant’s bottom line if the unionization takes hold, given its vast resources and pricing power.
“We do not believe the recent news creates a need to adjust our model at this time, but have chosen to provide a backdrop scenario analysis to assess what it could mean, should the situation become more pervasive," Brett Levy, executive director at MKM Partners, wrote in a research note last week.
While reiterating the stock as a "Buy," Levy said higher labor costs could push up operating expenses across 15% of its stores, translating into a bottom-line hit of around 3%.
Brooke DiPalma is a producer and reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter at @BrookeDiPalma or email her at bdipalma@yahoofinance.com.
Dani Romero is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter: @daniromerotv
No comments:
Post a Comment