The coffee giant Starbucks has told the National Labor Relations Board that the 450 workers at its Buffalo, New York market should be able to vote if unionized, according to a note Starbucks sent to its partners and obtained by CNBC .
“We believe this will make this process fair and respectful to all Buffalo partners. It will ensure that you have all the voting rights and voice you deserve in this process,” wrote Allyson Peck, regional vice president of Starbucks, Northern Region. -this, in the note for Buffalo employees.
The coffee chain is known for calling its employees “partners” and promoting them among the more progressive benefits of fast food and restaurant space, but faces a unionization campaign at several stores in the Buffalo area. Workers involved in the effort said working conditions worsened during the pandemic and they are looking for a more equitable partnership with the company.
The letter to Buffalo workers also said the company was taking steps to restore store operations to their standards, including help with staffing and repairing store problems quickly.
“Ask us anything, we’re all here to help you,” Peck said in the letter. “You have the right to work directly with Starbucks, and if you don’t want to waive that right, you should vote ‘no.’
In response to the letter, the organizers, Starbucks Workers United, said, “Starbucks is trying to delay our vote, using all legal tactics it can. The precedent of the NLRB is that a single store is the right unit. We are trying to organize a store and gain the right to organize in this company. ”
Starbucks said nothing it has filed with the NLRB is causing a delay.
On Aug. 23, Starbucks workers at three Buffalo stores said they would file petitions with the NLRB to hold union elections. The group sent a letter to Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson calling for fair elections without interference, which would not include negative repercussions from management or threats.
“Starbucks’ mission is to improve communities one coffee at a time. Respecting the right to partner organization will help us help the company fulfill that mission by improving our lives and raising standards across the industry,” the letter said. .
There are 20 Starbucks stores in Buffalo Market. If successful, the decision to unionize will affect the coffee giant’s 8,000 business stores nationwide and could have an effect across the industry. An NLRB hearing will be held on September 22 if the two parties cannot reach an agreement.
Organizers withdrew requests to file two additional stores, as all five stores would have been consolidated and this would have pushed back the initial audience. That decision prompted organizers to accuse Starbucks of “union destruction” tactics.
In recent days, Rossann Williams, executive vice president of Starbucks North America, has been in Buffalo to do listening sessions with workers. One person familiar with his schedule said he would remain in the market for the foreseeable future. Starbucks founder and former CEO Howard Schultz also visited Buffalo to hear from his partners.
“As the founder of the company, it’s understandable that he’s passionate about what’s going on here and has been in the market to listen and connect directly with our partners,” Starbucks spokeswoman Reggie Borges told CNBC.
Starbucks leaders have held more than 2,000 listening sessions in U.S. markets over the past year, the company said. Williams has participated in more than 175 sessions. The company has also held a weekly virtual meeting with both corporate and retail workers since the pandemic began.
Before Starbucks sent his letter, Starbucks Workers United told CNBC in an email statement: “Rossann never came to Buffalo before the union campaign began. He’s not gone. He’s in our stores, starbucks us and interrupts our work Starbucks calls us, but they are afraid of what a real partnership means: empowerment and voice at the table.If Rossann means what he says about valuing “peer-to-peer communication,” he should give welcome to our union and look forward to negotiating with members by working on the ground every day and stopping calling our union a “third party”.
Starbucks categorically called the claims that the unions broke and the statements that Williams spied on the workers categorically false.
“Leaders are in the market to listen to partners, address concerns and take action. We are pro-partners, not anti-union,” Borges said.
Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) showed his support for the effort on Twitter Monday by posting a photo of him with a cup of Starbucks coffee with the word “Union!” written on.