In Newberry, South Carolina, a significant development unfolded as Starbucks employees at the Main Street & Wilson Road location filed for a union election. The move was not isolated; it was part of an extensive day of filing petitions with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) by workers from 18 different Starbucks stores across the country.
Starbucks United Bargaining and Contributions
Formulating the filing initiative just after the completion of the second round of national bargaining between Starbucks and Starbucks Workers United members, significant traction has been made towards establishing a foundational framework for store contracts. Adopting the United Workers’ fight, the employees at Newberry are requesting better respect at workplace, living wages, gender and racial equality, and more consistent scheduling practices from their employer.
Employee Perspective
Commitment towards this collective cause was passionately stated by Chesney Bolton, a shift lead at the Newberry location with three years of service. He noted, “Coming from a small town in the South, we don’t get many opportunities to make a change. We do everything together here, so fighting for this, for a company that can do better for us, we do it together! We look forward to joining the bargaining process to negotiate a contract that not only helps the partners in Newberry, but the partners across the country as well.”
Co-Authoring A Letter To Starbucks CEO
In an attempt to bring their concerns directly to the Starbucks leadership, the workers from these 18 outlets co-authored a letter to Starbucks CEO Laxman Narasimhan. The letter highlighted the shared experience of employees, the need for higher wages, reasonable scheduling, better benefits, and a workplace that respects the dignity of employees. While elaborating their issues, the employees affirmed their belief that establishing a union is the best approach to address their concerns.
Massive Wave of Unionization
In the current day, the number of Starbucks employees who have joined the unprecedented unionization movement across the nation is over 10,500 baristas. In alignment with this objective, Starbucks employees from Burbank, Miami, Bloomington, Brighton, Riverdale Park, Jackson, Troy Hills, and much more, including those at Newberry, have filed their petitions for the union elections.
Progress Updates on Starbucks Workers United
Initiated back in 2021, the Starbucks partners began their drive to form a union. Up until now, employees from over 440 Starbucks outlets have been victorious in winning union elections with NLRB in 43 states and the District of Columbia. It is the groundwork of the employees, with peer-to-peer organizing, that has led to consecutive victories in the union elections in stores across the nation.
Through their negotiations, the Starbucks workers have been able to secure “just cause” standards and educational benefits for the organized workers. Looking at the current trend, more partners from across the country are anticipated to join this growing union movement.
Final Thoughts
This enormous filing announcement followed several victories in the past weeks where Starbucks employees chose to join Starbucks Workers United in several states including Arkansas, Illinois, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Virginia, Utah, Wisconsin and more. The recent influx in filed union petitions reflects the determination of workers to seek better conditions in their workplace. It sets a precedent for other chains and locations to follow suit and address employee issues effectively.