Preparation for historic strike at Starbucks

Unionized Starbucks workers are planning their biggest strike yet this week, accusing the coffee giant of refusing to negotiate fairly at coffee shops that decide to organize.

Thousands of employees at hundreds of Starbucks stores will walk off the job on Red Cup Day, a popular promotional event in which Starbucks distributes Christmas-themed reusable cups, the Starbucks Workers United union said Monday, citing staffing and scheduling issues.

The union said Starbucks illegally refused to negotiate in good faith over issues such as staffing and scheduling, which are particularly burdensome during these types of promotions.

In its statement on the issue, Starbucks said the union was the party that refused to negotiate.

While the coffee chain claims it has been months since the union agreed to meet to negotiate contracts; The union claimed that Starbucks refused to negotiate unless workers acknowledged illegal violations of their rights.

REPRESENTS MORE THAN 9 THOUSAND EMPLOYEES

Workers United has won elections in more than 350 of the approximately 9,000 Starbucks company-operated stores in the United States, beginning with its historic victory in Buffalo, New York, nearly two years ago.

But the union’s pace of expansion has slowed considerably, and none of these stores have come close to signing a collective bargaining agreement with the company.

Regional directors of the U.S. National Labor Relations Board filed more than 100 complaints against the company, alleging illegal anti-union tactics such as closing stores, firing activists and refusing to engage in fair negotiations at union-organized stores. The institution also stated that the company “negotiated without the intention of reaching an agreement” in the first two unionized stores.

The striking workers plan to visit non-union cafes on November 16 to talk to other baristas about joining their efforts. Workers United represents more than 360 unionized stores and more than 9,000 Starbucks employees, according to the union’s website.