Starbucks workers reacted as they spoke to the media after the union vote in Buffalo, New York, December 9, 2021.
Lindsay Dedario Reuters
The regional director of the National Labor Relations Council in Buffalo, New York, filed a complaint Friday, accusing Starbucks of 29 allegations of unfair employment practices that include more than 200 violations of the National Labor Relations Act.
The lawsuit stems from lawsuits filed by Starbucks Workers United against the company in Buffalo, where efforts to organize unions began in August.
In a complaint handled by CNBC, the NLRB accused Starbucks of interfering, restricting and coercing employees who seek to unite in various ways. The regional office of the independent federal agency said the coffee giant threatened and intimidated workers by closing shops in the area, reducing workers’ compensation, imposing policies against union supporters in a discriminatory manner, monitoring and firing workers, among others. alleged violations.
The complaint also notes that senior Starbucks officials have made “unprecedented and repeated” visits to Buffalo and held mandatory anti-union meetings, noting that leaders, including CEO Howard Schultz, have promised increased benefits if workers abstain. from organizing. Buffalo is at the heart of the unions. The city is home to the first store to vote on the organization in December, sparking a nationwide movement.
“The complaint, filed by the NLRB’s regional director in Buffalo, involves important issues,” Starbucks spokesman Reggie Borges told CNBC. “However, Starbucks disagrees that the claims are well-founded and the issuance of the complaint does not constitute a conclusion of the NLRB. This is the beginning of a trial that allows both parties to be heard and present evidence. We believe that the allegations contained in the complaint are incorrect and look forward to presenting our evidence when the charges are handed down. “
Since the movement began last year, more than 50 Starbucks stores have voted to organize with Workers United, and nearly 250 have petitioned for nationwide voting. At least five voted against the organization. Starbucks has nearly 9,000 locations nationwide.
The NLRB regional office’s complaint includes months of allegations the union has made against the company. Starbucks will be able to respond to the allegations.
To rectify the allegations, the NLRB’s chief adviser is seeking reinstatement and Schultz or Rosan Williams, executive vice president of Starbucks North Americas, to meet with government officials, unions and government officials. At the meeting to be filmed and distributed, an employee will read a message about the employee’s rights.
“Starbucks says there has never been a union breakdown in Buffalo. Today, the NLRB is breaking the record. The complaint confirms the extent and corruption of Starbucks’ behavior in West New York for most of the year,” Starbucks Workers United said in a statement. “Starbucks will be held responsible for the minefield for breaking up the unions, through which workers were forced to fight for their right to organize. This complaint fully reveals the facade of Starbucks as a “progressive company” and reveals the truth about the war against the Howard Schultz unions.
Starbucks did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
Schultz, who served in his third term as CEO of Starbucks, has been an active and staunch opponent of unionization in the past. The company recently announced investments in pay and employee training, but said those benefits could not automatically go to union stores without separate negotiation discussions.
“The union agreement will not even come close to what Starbucks offers,” Schultz told analysts during a conference call on the company’s profits on Tuesday.
Barist union pressure gained more notoriety on Thursday as the White House hosted campaign leaders at Starbucks and other companies such as Amazon. Starbucks wrote to the White House asking for its own meeting, calling the event “deeply worrying” because it said most of its partners were opposed to union membership.
Starbucks Workers United has filed more than 100 unfair labor charges against Starbucks, while the company has filed two against the union in return. Starbucks Workers United also won a recent victory as NLRB employees petitioned a federal court to force the company to return employees who claimed to have been fired because of a union campaign.
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