More than 1,000 unionized Starbucks baristas went on strike at 65 stores in major U.S. cities Thursday, protesting stalled labor negotiations with the company.
The strike aimed to disrupt Starbucks’ Red Cup Day — one of its busiest days — when the company hands out free reusable cups to holiday drink buyers.
“We’re turning the Red Cup Season into the Red Cup Rebellion. Starbucks’ refusal to settle a fair union contract and end union busting is forcing us to take drastic action,” Dachi Spoltore, a barista in Pittsburgh, said in a press release from Starbucks Workers United, the union organizing the strike.
Organizers said the strike would affect stores in 45 cities, including New York, Philadelphia, Minneapolis, San Diego, Dallas and Starbucks’ hometown of Seattle.
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With no end date for the strike set, organizers said more stores are prepared to join through the holiday season if the two sides do not reach a contract agreement.
Organizers have accused the coffeehouse chain of union-busting, refusing to negotiate a fair contract and perpetuating hundreds of unresolved labor-law violations.
Workers are demanding better staffing and more hours, higher take-home pay and fairer compensation, and a resolution to 700+ pending unfair labor practice cases filed with the National Labor Relations Board, according to union organizers.
A Starbucks spokesperson said the strike will impact less than 1% of its coffeehouses, with the overwhelming majority remaining open and serving customers as normal.
“We’re disappointed that Workers United, who represents less than 4% of our partners, has called for a strike instead of returning to the bargaining table,” the spokesperson said.
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The company also said it is ready to continue negotiations whenever the union chooses to return to the table.
“Any agreement needs to reflect the reality that Starbucks offers the best job in retail, including more than $30 an hour on average in pay and benefits for hourly partners,” the spokesperson said.
On Thursday afternoon, a Starbucks spokesperson released a statement saying that sales expectations were already strong for the day.
“The day is off to an incredible start — based on what we’ve seen this morning, we’re on track to exceed our sales expectations for the day across company-operated coffeehouses in North America,” the spokesperson said.
Since December 2021, more than 12,000 Starbucks workers at nearly 650 stores have unionized. Yet progress on a first contract has stalled despite bargaining sessions between April and December 2024.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SBUX | STARBUCKS CORP. | 84.71 | +1.03 | +1.23% |
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When CEO Brian Niccol took the reins of the coffeehouse chain over a year ago, he pledged to reset relations with employees, though the union says progress on a fair contract has stalled under his leadership.
FOX Business’ Emma Bussey contributed to this report.
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