Starbucks Union

Attempt to Deny Election Laid Bare

June 2004

New York, NY- Lawyers for the IWW IU/660, the union representing Starbucks workers, issued a sharp rebuke in response to the attempt by Starbucks to deny employees a union certification election. The legal brief filed with the National Labor Relations Board lambasted Starbucks for obfuscating facts and ignoring well-established precedent holding that a single store in a retail chain is a valid bargaining unit. A decision in the matter, expected within two weeks, will determine whether Baristas at the Manhattan store are entitled to a vote. Workers have pledged to fight on with or without government certification.

Customers Have a Right to Know the Truth

New York, NY- The Starbucks Baristas Union has released a "Fact Sheet for Guests" packed with information about what it’s like to work at the world’s largest coffee chain. The fact sheet, addressed specifically to Starbucks guests (customers), exposes the truth about the Starbucks poverty pay package as well as unsafe working conditions resulting in endemic repetitive stress and other types of injuries. The document concludes by requesting that customers take steps to support the workers’ unionization effort to achieve a decent livelihood and a sound workplace.

Monday, May 24, 2004

On the Job: N.Y. baristas get organized

SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER STAFF AND NEWS SERVICES

Some New York baristas want more for their lattes and mochas. They're threatening to form the first union at a U.S. Starbucks store.

In midtown Manhattan, baristas sent union cards to the National Labor Relations Board last week, seeking a vote that could occur next month on union representation for roughly 12 employees, according to Daniel Gross, a Starbucks worker and one of the organizers.

Gross said store workers want a union because Starbucks doesn't offer them a wage they can live on in notoriously expensive New York City. The Seattle-based coffee giant also has refused to adequately staff the store, creating safety concerns as baristas hustle to serve throngs of thirsty New Yorkers, while handling scalding steamed milk, according to Gross.

May 19, 2004

By SONI SANGHA

DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Something's brewing at Starbucks - and it's not the coffee.

Unhappy workers want to unionize the java joint on Madison Ave. and 36th St. If successful, they will be the first baristas from the ubiquitous chain to unite.

They submitted union cards yesterday to the Industrial Workers of the World IU/660. Within 45 days, workers at that store will vote whether or not to join.

Baristas Petition for Election

New York, NY- Starbucks workers here have organized a union with the Industrial Workers of the World IU/660 and have submitted union cards today to the NLRB for a certification election. The workers are poised to become the first Starbucks Baristas union certified in the country. Starbucks Baristas at the 36th and Madison location in Midtown Manhattan have come together in an effort to raise themselves out of poverty as well as to achieve respect and dignity on the job. The workers are calling on Starbucks to obey the law as the election approaches.

"Behind the green aprons and smiles are individuals living in serious poverty," said Daniel Gross, a worker at the store. "Baristas are the cornerstone of a Starbucks coffee shop, we just deserve better. Starbucks cashes in on a community friendly image but it certainly doesn’t extend to their workers or coffee farmers. That’s why we went Union."