ST. LOUIS — Starbucks employees across the nation, including those at eight unionized stores in the St. Louis area, did not go to the job Thursday, alleging the company's refusal to engage in fair negotiations.
Participating stores included: Lindbergh & Clayton, Hanley & Dale, Hampton & Wise, Kingshighway & Chippewa, Grand & Sidney, Gravois & Rock Hill, Valley Park, and Page & Ball.
The protest sheds light on the challenges faced by workers despite the coffee giant's record profits.
At the Starbucks located at Sydney and Grand Boulevard in south St. Louis, the atmosphere was charged with honks and heartfelt sentiments as employees voiced their concerns.
When asked about her love for the job, shift supervisor Riley Staack said, "I do. I really do. It means the world to me to see all of our regulars and have conversations with them daily."
Despite a drive-thru line wrapped around the corner, Starbucks workers spent six hours outside the store, emphasizing their grievances. The base of the issue revolves around staffing cuts that have impacted the workers' ability to serve customers, even as the company reports record profits year over year.
Staack shared the challenges of leading a short-staffed team, revealing personal sacrifices made to ensure colleagues could take breaks.
"I have to sacrifice my ability to take breaks at work so that everybody's capable of getting their lunch because otherwise there would be two people working the floor while mobile orders continue to come through."
On Starbucks' Red Cup Day, employees took a stand, demanding fair negotiations with the company. Despite two bargaining sessions, workers claim that Starbucks representatives walked out of the meetings within five minutes on both occasions.
If it were not for employees from a different store that's being renovated, staff said the drive-thru at the south city location would have been completely closed, similar to other locations throughout the city and in previous strikes.
Sabrina Carpenter, another employee, expressed dissatisfaction with the inconsistent schedules and unexpected shifts, stating, "Everybody gets moved from morning to night shifts unexpectedly. It's like not consistent schedules. People are not making nearly enough for the jobs that they are doing."
As the holiday season approaches, Starbucks workers are firm in their demands for better working conditions. They argue that fair treatment will allow them to continue serving their communities with passion and dedication.
"We all feel passionately about our community and being able to make those connections and serve them," said one worker, emphasizing the commitment of Starbucks employees to their customers and communities.
A spokesperson for Starbucks acknowledged the efforts and sent the following statement:
"We are aware that Workers United has publicized a day of action at a small subset of our U.S. stores this week. We remain committed to working with all partners, side-by-side, to elevate the everyday, and we hope that Workers United’s priorities will shift to include the shared success of our partners and working to negotiate contracts for those they represent.
"Despite escalating rhetoric and recurring rallies demanding a contract, Workers United hasn't agreed to meet to progress contract bargaining in more than four months. As we join together to uplift the holiday season and reflect on the past year, we again call on Workers United to fulfill their obligations and engage in the work of negotiating first contracts on behalf of the partners they represent. Starbucks remains ready to progress in-person negotiations with the unions certified to represent partners."
The company shared the following about the negotiation process:
"Starbucks remains committed to enhancing the partner experience and offering everyone who wears the green apron a bridge to a better future. We're encouraged by the progress we've seen towards first contracts at stores where union representatives have approached bargaining with professionalism and an actual interest in discussing partner priorities with our bargaining committees. Of note, and as detailed below, we have reached multiple ratified CBAs for separate stores in Canada — and we expect that, as envisioned by the NLRA, partners at a subset of our U.S. company-owned stores will eventually be subject to the terms of ratified store-specific CBAs."
