More than two years after the push to unionize began in New York, Starbucks has opened the door to negotiations with organized labor.
In December 2021, Starbucks workers in Buffalo started what became a national movement.
Now, nearly 400 stores and 10,000 workers in 42 states and the District of Columbia have voted to unionize.
On Tuesday, Starbucks and Workers United, the union representing baristas, issued a joint statement announcing that they’re ready to work together.
The statement, provided to WAMC by a public relations firm, says the two parties “agreed to begin discussions on a foundational framework to achieve collective bargaining agreements for represented stores and partners; the resolution of litigation between the union and the company, including brand litigation; and a fair process for workers to organize.”
Additionally, Starbucks says it will provide Workers United employees credit card tipping and other benefits.
The announcement came two weeks ahead of a March 12th national day of action, which has since been called off by the union.
Reached for comment, a district director for Workers United referred WAMC to a national spokesperson.
In 2022, when a store in Albany’s Stuyvesant Plaza was pushing for unionization, then-Starbucks employee Jake Evans described working at the shop.
“I think people are just sick and tired of, basically, feeling used and want to feel valued in the work they do, and also work in an environment where they feel safe and supported. And I think that’s where a lot of it stems from,” said Evans.
Local labor leaders are celebrating the news that Starbucks has opened the door to negotiations.
Mark Emanatian, Executive Director of the Capital District Area Labor Federation, said Starbucks workers didn’t give up during a years-long push.
“That youthful energy really pushed up forward and really dedicated organizers that worked on it and are working on it. I mean, it's still going on the contract but I think it's gonna happen,” said Emanatian.
Emanatian says the Starbucks announcement comes as community interest in unionizing increases.
“Workers are calling from different places to organize unions, to ask, ‘Can we form a union?’ And then we're also seeing that unions that are…their contracts are expiring, or they need…are more willing to actually participate. We're seeing, in just local union meetings, that many more people are coming to the meetings, members,” said Emanatian.
Emanatian believes the barista breakthrough will electrify new unionization efforts.
“I think that opens up the doors for lots of other service industry people in both retail and all the different other stores to have a wind behind their back. And we're seeing this around the country. The Teamsters just announced that they got a tentative settlement with Anheuser -Busch,” said Emanatian.
On Wednesday, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters union announced a tentative five-year agreement with the brewing giant for its 5,000 members at 12 Anheuser-Busch facilities, including in Baldwinsville, New York. The agreement averted a strike. Voting on a final agreement could begin next week.
