Photo by: Anthony Bolante | PSBJ/Anthony Bolante | PSBJ
The American flag flies over Starbuck's corporate headquarters in the SODO district of Seattle on May 11, 2018.
By: Joey Thompson - Phoenix Business Journal
Posted at Apr 18, 2022
MESA, AZ — The National Labor Relations Board has filed a second complaint against Starbucks Corp. (Nasdaq: SBUX) for unfair labor practices against pro-union baristas in Arizona.
Across the country, more than 200 of the coffee chain's 9,000 company-operated stores have filed for union elections, and more than a dozen have approved unions, including workers at a Starbucks in Mesa, who approved to unionize in February. To date, none have successfully negotiated a contract.
Baristas have filed dozens of unfair labor practice charges against the coffee giant amid their efforts to unionize. In March, NLRB investigators in Arizona became the first to advance a complaint against the Seattle-based company, saying they had found sufficient evidence of alleged retaliation and intimidation at a Phoenix Starbucks location.
On April 13, investigators filed a second complaint, alleging further mistreatment, including discipline, interrogation, coercive statements, according to agency records, at the Scottsdale 101 shopping center Starbucks location at 7000 East Mayo Blvd. According to the complaint, Starbucks has until April 27 to respond, with a hearing set for June before a NLRB administrative law judge.
Starbucks employees detail pattern of corporate retaliation for their unionization efforts in Arizona
Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert
Apr 17, 2022
Laila Dalton and Alyssa Sanchez both say they were retaliated against for supporting the union.
The results of the store's union vote should be known by the end of the month.
Employees at a Starbucks in Arizona, who began unionizing earlier this year, allege the coffee giant has engaged in a pattern of retaliation for organizing – leaving workers with cut hours, threats and harassment, and the loss of their jobs.
While waiting for a hearing regarding a complaint they filed with the National Labor Relations Board about the poor treatment, employees who remain at the store say working conditions inside are getting worse.
"Things have really started to shift and change and now I'm at the point where like, this job is causing my mental health to be at such a low point. I think the lowest it's ever been in my entire life," Tyler Gillette, a Starbucks employee of two and a half years, told Insider.
Gillette is an experienced training barista who worked at several locations before helping to open the Scottsdale & Mayo location in Phoenix, Arizona, last year.
Gillette, as well as three other current and former employees of the location, said a change in management at the end of 2021 signaled a shift in working conditions. The once warm and friendly environment turned cold and rigid. Suddenly, scheduling accommodations were denied, requests for days off were left pending, and management began "cracking down" on every little rule.
Several employees, inspired by unionization at Starbucks locations in Buffalo, began to discuss organizing their store earlier this year.
Laila Dalton, a 19-year-old former barista at the Phoenix store, is a vocal advocate of unionizing at her location but says retaliation began almost immediately after beginning to publicly organize – and eventually led to her being fired.
"After I handed out the ballot cards, on my next shift I was punished, basically for wanting to start a union and create a better work environment so we can all have a voice," Dalton told Insider.
The harassment increased — one coworker said Dalton had "a target on her back" — with Dalton, a supervisor on the floor with no extensive history of disciplinary action, being written up for infractions like wearing headphones after closing, "improper call outs" for absences while in the hospital and after her aunt died, and recording the meetings where she said she was harassed to tears.
Signs held by Starbucks union supporters as they protest for Laila Dalton's reinstatement April 6. Laila Dalton
Federal union-busting complaints
Dalton, as well as Gillette and their coworkers Alyssa Sanchez and Bill Whitmire, filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board on January 26, alleging Starbucks had violated federal law by retaliating against union supporters.
In its March 29 response to the complaint, Starbucks denied all allegations of retaliation made by employees of the Arizona store.
Starbucks Workers United, a growing union effort that began with Buffalo, New York, Starbucks employees, has filed more than 20 complaints alleging similar retaliation directed toward union supporters.
As union efforts have gained steam at Starbucks locations nationwide — with multiple stores voting unanimously to unionize — the coffee company has faced increasing reports and formal complaints regarding union-busting tactics and retaliation. In Memphis, Tennessee, seven would-be union workers were fired for what Starbucks called "safety" reasons after they invited press to a closed store to discuss their efforts.
In Buffalo, at least two stores that attempted to unionize were closed entirely, which Starbucks said was a coincidence.
At the store in Phoenix, two union organizers are facing cut hours, one had her hours cut down until she had to find a new job, and Dalton was fired in what she calls "100% retaliation" for organizing. Dalton's firing was not included in the original complaint of retaliation.
A Starbucks spokesperson told Insider: "Any partner's interest in a union does not exempt them from the standards we've always held. We will continue enforcing our policies consistently for all partners. And any claims of anti-union activity are categorically false."
"We are 100% committed to following the NLRB process," the spokesperson added.
Starbucks prepares for union fight
For its part, Starbucks appears to be preparing for increased union activity. The coffee chain recently hired a new strategy chief as unionization efforts ramp up across the US and on Wednesday began advertising for an in-house lawyer with experience in 'strike contingency planning.'
In an April 4 Town Hall meeting, his first since returning to Starbucks as CEO and the same day Dalton was fired, Howard Schultz said the company was being "assaulted in many ways by the threat of unionization."
While Dalton remains active in trying to organize the Phoenix store and hopes to be reinstated following the results of the NLRB hearing on June 14, she says workers who remain at the store have been telling her how much worse work has been since the union effort has gained more attention.
"Everyone is texting me, keeping me in the loop. And I mean it sounds like they're really trying to intimidate them," Dalton told Insider. "They're starting to take people one by one, starting to ask them if they have any questions about why I got fired, or any questions about how to vote, on how to vote on the ballot."
A reinstatement rally
Sanchez left Starbucks after her managers declined to accommodate her schedule, which she said was directly related to organizing. While she didn't want to leave her position and was never officially fired, she said her hours were cut until she couldn't afford to continue working with the company and found a new job.
Whitmire, a supervisor and union committee member, remains at the Phoenix location but says the store environment has become hostile and his hours are being cut down from full-time to part-time.
Gillette told Insider the company appears to be doing something similar to them. Both employees previously had consistent schedules of over 30 hours to make ends meet. Since publicly supporting the union, both have had their hours cut nearly in half.
"I'm at the point where I have to for my own well being I have to really consider quitting, which is exactly what they want — and they've done this to so many other people; pushed them to the point where it's like, for their livelihood and for their sanity, they have to quit. We have to quit," Gillette said.
Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert
Apr 17, 2022
Laila Dalton protests at her reinstatement rally April 6 outside the Starbucks store she was fired from. Laila Dalton
A Phoenix Starbucks store is facing a federal complaint for retaliation against unionizing employees.
A Phoenix Starbucks store is facing a federal complaint for retaliation against unionizing employees.
Laila Dalton and Alyssa Sanchez both say they were retaliated against for supporting the union.
The results of the store's union vote should be known by the end of the month.
Employees at a Starbucks in Arizona, who began unionizing earlier this year, allege the coffee giant has engaged in a pattern of retaliation for organizing – leaving workers with cut hours, threats and harassment, and the loss of their jobs.
While waiting for a hearing regarding a complaint they filed with the National Labor Relations Board about the poor treatment, employees who remain at the store say working conditions inside are getting worse.
"Things have really started to shift and change and now I'm at the point where like, this job is causing my mental health to be at such a low point. I think the lowest it's ever been in my entire life," Tyler Gillette, a Starbucks employee of two and a half years, told Insider.
Gillette is an experienced training barista who worked at several locations before helping to open the Scottsdale & Mayo location in Phoenix, Arizona, last year.
Gillette, as well as three other current and former employees of the location, said a change in management at the end of 2021 signaled a shift in working conditions. The once warm and friendly environment turned cold and rigid. Suddenly, scheduling accommodations were denied, requests for days off were left pending, and management began "cracking down" on every little rule.
Several employees, inspired by unionization at Starbucks locations in Buffalo, began to discuss organizing their store earlier this year.
Laila Dalton, a 19-year-old former barista at the Phoenix store, is a vocal advocate of unionizing at her location but says retaliation began almost immediately after beginning to publicly organize – and eventually led to her being fired.
"After I handed out the ballot cards, on my next shift I was punished, basically for wanting to start a union and create a better work environment so we can all have a voice," Dalton told Insider.
Federal union-busting complaints
Dalton, as well as Gillette and their coworkers Alyssa Sanchez and Bill Whitmire, filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board on January 26, alleging Starbucks had violated federal law by retaliating against union supporters.
In its March 29 response to the complaint, Starbucks denied all allegations of retaliation made by employees of the Arizona store.
Starbucks Workers United, a growing union effort that began with Buffalo, New York, Starbucks employees, has filed more than 20 complaints alleging similar retaliation directed toward union supporters.
As union efforts have gained steam at Starbucks locations nationwide — with multiple stores voting unanimously to unionize — the coffee company has faced increasing reports and formal complaints regarding union-busting tactics and retaliation. In Memphis, Tennessee, seven would-be union workers were fired for what Starbucks called "safety" reasons after they invited press to a closed store to discuss their efforts.
In Buffalo, at least two stores that attempted to unionize were closed entirely, which Starbucks said was a coincidence.
At the store in Phoenix, two union organizers are facing cut hours, one had her hours cut down until she had to find a new job, and Dalton was fired in what she calls "100% retaliation" for organizing. Dalton's firing was not included in the original complaint of retaliation.
A Starbucks spokesperson told Insider: "Any partner's interest in a union does not exempt them from the standards we've always held. We will continue enforcing our policies consistently for all partners. And any claims of anti-union activity are categorically false."
"We are 100% committed to following the NLRB process," the spokesperson added.
Starbucks prepares for union fight
For its part, Starbucks appears to be preparing for increased union activity. The coffee chain recently hired a new strategy chief as unionization efforts ramp up across the US and on Wednesday began advertising for an in-house lawyer with experience in 'strike contingency planning.'
In an April 4 Town Hall meeting, his first since returning to Starbucks as CEO and the same day Dalton was fired, Howard Schultz said the company was being "assaulted in many ways by the threat of unionization."
While Dalton remains active in trying to organize the Phoenix store and hopes to be reinstated following the results of the NLRB hearing on June 14, she says workers who remain at the store have been telling her how much worse work has been since the union effort has gained more attention.
"Everyone is texting me, keeping me in the loop. And I mean it sounds like they're really trying to intimidate them," Dalton told Insider. "They're starting to take people one by one, starting to ask them if they have any questions about why I got fired, or any questions about how to vote, on how to vote on the ballot."
A reinstatement rally
Sanchez left Starbucks after her managers declined to accommodate her schedule, which she said was directly related to organizing. While she didn't want to leave her position and was never officially fired, she said her hours were cut until she couldn't afford to continue working with the company and found a new job.
Whitmire, a supervisor and union committee member, remains at the Phoenix location but says the store environment has become hostile and his hours are being cut down from full-time to part-time.
Gillette told Insider the company appears to be doing something similar to them. Both employees previously had consistent schedules of over 30 hours to make ends meet. Since publicly supporting the union, both have had their hours cut nearly in half.
"I'm at the point where I have to for my own well being I have to really consider quitting, which is exactly what they want — and they've done this to so many other people; pushed them to the point where it's like, for their livelihood and for their sanity, they have to quit. We have to quit," Gillette said.
Starbucks union supporters protest for Laila Dalton's reinstatement on April 6. Laila Dalton
In addition to the cut hours, Gillette — who is transgender and autistic — said they are now also facing increased harassment about their gender and disability since publicly supporting the union. Coworkers and managers now consistently misgender them and they said they were forced to take a two-week leave of absence until they could get medical documentation that said they were cleared to work after requesting accommodations to make their shifts more comfortable.
"It's causing my mental health to really suffer. It's messing with my livelihood. I wasn't able to pay rent this month. So now if I don't figure something out by the end of this month, I'm gonna be homeless because Starbucks is royally screwing me over," Gillette said.
At the Arizona location, despite the impacts of the managerial crackdown on former and current staff, union support has been increasing. Employees and regular customers of the store held a reinstatement rally on behalf of Dalton on April 6 and the remaining workers are holding an official union vote this week. Ballots are due April 19 and the store should know if its union efforts were successful within two weeks after that.
"They could try this on me. I'm not scared. I still have a smile on my face. I still know that I will be back and I am confident about this election because it doesn't really matter what management does," Dalton said. "We have such a great team and we love each other so much."
KEEP READING
ECONOMY
A surge in retail union organizing is the surest sign yet that workers are fed upMore: Starbucks Labor Union NLRB
In addition to the cut hours, Gillette — who is transgender and autistic — said they are now also facing increased harassment about their gender and disability since publicly supporting the union. Coworkers and managers now consistently misgender them and they said they were forced to take a two-week leave of absence until they could get medical documentation that said they were cleared to work after requesting accommodations to make their shifts more comfortable.
"It's causing my mental health to really suffer. It's messing with my livelihood. I wasn't able to pay rent this month. So now if I don't figure something out by the end of this month, I'm gonna be homeless because Starbucks is royally screwing me over," Gillette said.
At the Arizona location, despite the impacts of the managerial crackdown on former and current staff, union support has been increasing. Employees and regular customers of the store held a reinstatement rally on behalf of Dalton on April 6 and the remaining workers are holding an official union vote this week. Ballots are due April 19 and the store should know if its union efforts were successful within two weeks after that.
"They could try this on me. I'm not scared. I still have a smile on my face. I still know that I will be back and I am confident about this election because it doesn't really matter what management does," Dalton said. "We have such a great team and we love each other so much."
KEEP READING
ECONOMY
A surge in retail union organizing is the surest sign yet that workers are fed upMore: Starbucks Labor Union NLRB
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