Nov. 10, 2025 "U.S. lawmakers urge Starbucks CEO to restart union talks": Today I found this article by Waylon Cunningham on BNN Bloomberg:
Twenty-six U.S. senators and 82 House representatives have written to Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol, urging the company to resume talks with its workers union, the lawmakers said on Monday.
“We have heard of a troubling return to union busting,” states the letter from the group of senators led by Senator Bernie Sanders, which was seen by Reuters.
It said Starbucks must “bargain a fair contract in good faith with these employees.”
House representatives, led by the House Labor Caucus and Representative Pramila Jayapal, penned a similar letter sent on Monday. No Republicans signed either letter.
Sides blame each other
Talks between Starbucks
and Starbucks Workers United, which represents roughly 9,500 workers, began in April last year but have since stalled.
Both sides blame the other for ending talks and say they are ready to return to discussions.
Starbucks said in a statement the union represents only 4% of its workforce and that the company already offers “the best job in retail.”
Starbucks offers employees who work at least 20 hours a week benefits including
healthcare,
parental leave,
and tuition for online classes at Arizona State University.
Starbucks Workers United has filed more than 100 charges against the company since December for
alleged unfair labor practices,
such as retaliation against unionizing baristas,
according to the letters.
The letters also said Starbucks “has the money to reach a fair agreement,” noting that in 2024 Starbucks spent several billion dollars on dividends and stock buybacks and compensated Niccol $95 million, which largely covered shares he left at Chipotle.
Starbucks said its stock actions benefited workers who own shares through a company program as well as institutional investors and pension funds.
The union said last week workers are prepared to strike if a contract is not finalized by November 13, the company’s high-sales “Red Cup Day,”
and that strikes could hit more than 25 cities initially and escalate if there is no progress.
Niccol has sought to overhaul U.S. store operations in a bid to win back customers.
The coffee company suffered six quarters of sales declines before October 29,
when the company reported 1% global sales growth.
Starbucks in September shut more than 600 stores,
including its flagship unionized outlet in Seattle,
and trimmed its corporate workforce as part of the turnaround efforts.
(Reporting by Waylon Cunningham Editing by Rod Nickel)
Nov. 13, 2025 "Starbucks workers kick off 65-store U.S. strike on company’s busy Red Cup Day": Today I found this article by Dee-Ann Durbin on BNN Bloomberg:
More than 1,000 unionized Starbucks workers went on strike at 65 U.S. stores Thursday to protest a lack of progress in labor negotiations with the company.
The strike was intended to disrupt Starbucks’ Red Cup Day,
which is typically one of the company’s busiest days of the year.
Since 2018, Starbucks has given out free, reusable cups on that day to customers who buy a holiday drink.
Starbucks Workers United, the union organizing baristas, said Thursday morning that the strike had already closed some stores and was expected to force more to close later in the day.
Starbucks Workers United said stores in 45 cities would be impacted, including
New York,
Philadelphia,
Minneapolis,
San Diego,
St. Louis,
Dallas,
Columbus,
Ohio,
and Starbucks’ home city of Seattle.
There is no date set for the strike to end, and more stores are prepared to join if Starbucks doesn’t reach a contract agreement with the union, organizers said.
Starbucks emphasized that the vast majority of its U.S. stores would be open and operating as usual Thursday.
The coffee giant has 10,000 company-owned stores in the U.S.,
as well as 7,000 licensed locations in places like grocery stores and airports.
As of noon Thursday on the East Coast, Starbucks said it was on track to meet or exceed its sales expectations for the day at its company-owned stores.
“The day is off to an incredible start,” the company said in a statement.
Around 550 company-owned U.S. Starbucks stores are currently unionized.
More have voted to unionize,
but Starbucks closed 59 unionized stores in September as part of a larger reorganization campaign.
Here’s what’s behind the strike.
A stalled contract agreement
Striking workers say they’re protesting because Starbucks has yet to reach a contract agreement with the union.
Starbucks workers first voted to unionize at a store in Buffalo in 2021.
In December 2023, Starbucks vowed to finalize an agreement by the end of 2024.
But in August of last year, the company ousted Laxman Narasimhan, the CEO who made that promise.
The union said progress has stalled under Brian Niccol, the company’s current chairman and CEO.
The two sides haven’t been at the bargaining table since April.
Workers want higher pay, better hours
Workers say they’re seeking better hours and improved staffing in stores, where they say long customer wait times are routine.
They also want higher pay, pointing out that executives like Niccol are making millions and the company spent US$81 million in June on a conference in Las Vegas for 14,000 store managers and regional leaders.
Dochi Spoltore, a barista from Pittsburgh, said in a union conference call Thursday
that it’s hard for workers to be assigned more than 19 hours per week,
which leaves them short of the 20 hours they would need to be eligible for Starbucks’ benefits.
Spoltore said she makes US$16 per hour.
“I want Starbucks to succeed. My livelihood depends on it,”
Spoltore said.
”We’re proud of our work,
but we’re tired of being treated like we’re disposable.”
The union also wants the company to resolve hundreds of unfair labor practice charges filed by workers,
who say the company has fired baristas in retaliation for unionizing
and has failed to bargain over changes in policy that workers must enforce,
like its decision earlier this year to limit restroom use to paying customers.
Starbucks stands by its wages and benefits
Starbucks says it offers the best wage and benefit package in retail, worth an average of US$30 per hour.
Among the company’s benefits are
up to 18 weeks of paid family leave
and 100 per cent tuition coverage for a four-year college degree.
In a letter to employees last week, Starbucks’ Chief Partner Officer Sara Kelly said the union walked away from the bargaining table in the spring.
Kelly said some of the union’s proposals would significantly alter Starbucks’ operations,
such as giving workers the ability to shut down mobile ordering if a store has more than five orders in the queue.
Kelly said Starbucks remained ready to talk and “believes we can move quickly to a reasonable deal.”
Kelly also said surveys showed that most employees like working for the company,
and its barista turnover rates are half the industry average.
Limited locations with high visibility
Unionized workers have gone on strike at Starbucks before.
In 2022
and 2023,
workers walked off the job on Red Cup Day.
Last year, a five-day strike ahead of Christmas closed 59 U.S. stores.
Each time, Starbucks said the disruption to its operations was minimal.
Starbucks Workers United said the new strike is open-ended and could spread to many more unionized locations.
The number of non-union Starbucks locations dwarfs the number of unionized ones.
But Todd Vachon, a union expert at the Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations, said
any strike could be highly visible
and educate the public on baristas’ concerns.
Unlike manufacturers, Vachon said,
retail industries depend on the connection between their employees and their customers.
That makes shaming a potentially powerful weapon in the union’s arsenal, he said.
Improving sales
Starbucks’ same-store sales, or sales at locations open at least a year, rose one per cent in the July-September period. It was the first time in nearly two years that the company had posted an increase.
In his first year at the company, Niccol
set new hospitality standards,
redesigned stores to be cozier and more welcoming,
and adjusted staffing levels to better handle peak hours.
Starbucks also is trying to prioritize in-store orders over mobile ones.
Last week, the company’s holiday drink rollout in the U.S. was so successful that it almost immediately sold out of its glass Bearista cup.
Starbucks said demand for the cup exceeded its expectations, but it wouldn’t say if the Bearista will return before the holidays are over.
---
Dee-Ann Durbin, The Associated Press
My opinion: This part stood out to me:
Dochi Spoltore, a barista from Pittsburgh, said in a union conference call Thursday
that it’s hard for workers to be assigned more than 19 hours per week,
which leaves them short of the 20 hours they would need to be eligible for Starbucks’ benefits.
Spoltore said she makes US$16 per hour.
“I want Starbucks to succeed. My livelihood depends on it,”
Spoltore said.
”We’re proud of our work,
but we’re tired of being treated like we’re disposable.”
Also this:
But Todd Vachon, a union expert at the Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations, said
any strike could be highly visible
and educate the public on baristas’ concerns.
Unlike manufacturers, Vachon said,
retail industries depend on the connection between their employees and their customers.
That makes shaming a potentially powerful weapon in the union’s arsenal, he said.
This article of how Starbucks isn't treating or paying their employees very well reminds me of this:
"#MeToo movement becomes #WeToo in in victim-blaming Japan"/ "Outrage as women in Japan told not wear glasses in the workplace"
"You never look good when you are trying to make someone else look bad."- Unknown
Cham: Sometimes people need to be exposed for who they are hahah or maybe I should stop being petty
Tracy Au: There's a difference between trying to make someone look bad, and exposing them for who they are. It's like those #MeToo accusers and victims, they are plainly telling everybody about the perpetrators. They're not trying to make them look bad.
"Canadian workers say they face barriers amid growing union push at Starbucks"/ "Workers at experimental Starbucks-Amazon store push to unionize"
"Starbucks upgrades Amazon Just Walk Out technology powered NYC stores for improved smartphone experience"/ "Starbucks Barista Strike Expands on Fifth Day of Closures"
"Starbucks says customers have to buy something or leave, reversing open-door policy from 2018"/ "Soon, even your Starbucks latte can come with protein. Is the trend healthy, or just big business?"
https://badcb.blogspot.com/2025/12/starbucks-says-customers-have-to-buy.html
"Starbucks shuttering stores, laying off 900 workers in Canada and U.S."/ "Starbucks CTO resigned Monday, interim named"
https://badcb.blogspot.com/2025/12/starbucks-shuttering-stores-laying-off.html
Mon. Dec. 15, 2025:
Lise Raphaelle D, Saint-Jérôme, Quebec, would like to know:
How much do social media ads influence your purchasing habits?
Not at all 53.66% (2815)
A little 32.86% (1724)
Moderately 10.52% (552)
A lot 2.36% (124)
Extremely 0.59% (31)
Treanna R, St. Catharines, Ontario, would like to know:
How do you usually remove snow after a heavy snowfall?
Shovel 37.98% (1682)
Snow removal service 22.17% (982)
Snow blower 21.31% (944)
Included in rent (service provided by landlord) 17.93% (794)
Salt or abrasives 0.61% (27)
Jeral A, Toronto, Ontario, would like to know:
Which era do you prefer for films and TV shows?
2010s to present 45.81% (1933)
1990s–2000s 2.84% (1386)
1970s–1980s 16.66% (703)
Before 1970 4.69% (198)
Adriana P, Arundel, Quebec, would like to know:
For Christmas, do you ask your guests to bring a dish, or do you prepare everything yourself?
I am not hosting this year 33.91% (1523)
I prepare everything myself 30.88% (1387)
A bit of both 19.44% (873)
I don’t celebrate Christmas 8.08% (363)
My guests bring a dish 7.68% (345)
April H, Nanaimo, British Columbia, would like to know:
Do you use your public library’s services?
No 55.09% (2344)
Yes 44.91% (1911)
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