FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Starbucks Workers Union/Industrial Workers of the World
Contact: Erik Forman, 608-695-8705
October 1, 2008
Starbucks Settles Labor Board Case Over Illegal Union-Busting in Minnesota
Fired Union Barista Reinstated to Mall of America Location after Union Pressure Campaign
Minneapolis, MN– The Starbucks Workers Union announced today that Starbucks has settled with the National Labor Relations Board on charges of anti-union malfeasance, ranging from interrogation of union activists, threats against workers, illegal firings, to surveillance of union activity. The settlement agreement comes in the wake of the reinstatement of IWW barista Erik Forman to the Mall of America location on August 31. Forman, a union organizer, was illegally fired on July 10 for allegedly “discussing a written warning with a peer.”
Forman said, “Sadly, Starbucks has continued the legacy of illegal union-busting against the IWW that they initiated in New York City in 2004. We have shown that they won’t get away with it in Minnesota. The public is on our side. The law is on our side. We will keep organizing until we win justice for baristas.”
This is the third NLRB settlement Starbucks has entered into in its four-year battle with the Industrial Workers of the World, a labor union. Since the launch of the IWW campaign at Starbucks on May 17, 2004, the company has been cited in three states for illegal union-busting by the National Labor Relations Board. The company settled three complaints against it and is awaiting a decision by a judge in New York on more than 30 additional rights’ violations. Starbucks’ large anti-union operation is operated in conjunction with the Akin Gump law firm and the Edelman public relations firm. In Minnesota, Starbucks has contracted with unionbusting consultants Halleland Lewis Nilan & Johnson.
Undeterred by the corporate union-busting apparatus, Baristas at the Mall of America location announced their affiliation with the IWW on July 21 in a walkout protesting Starbucks store closures. The Union baristas demand a fair severance package for affected workers, as well as severance pay based on seniority. The Union’s core demands also include a living wage, cost of living increases, and guaranteed hours.
While portraying itself as a ‘socially-responsible’ employer, Starbucks pays baristas a poverty wage of $7.60/hr. In addition, all retail hourly workers at Starbucks in the United States are part-time employees with no guaranteed number of work hours per week. According to Starbucks figures released to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 40.9% of its employees (including managers) are covered by the company health care package, a lower percentage than the oft-criticized Wal-Mart, which insures 47% of its workforce.
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The IWW Starbucks Workers Union is a grassroots organization of over 200 current and former employees at the world's largest coffee chain united for secure work hours and a living wage. The union has members throughout the United States fighting for systemic change at the company and remedying individual grievances with management. The SWU has been especially active in New York City, Chicago, Grand Rapids, and Minneapolis.
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