In December 2021, the very first Starbucks union was formed in Buffalo, New York. The baristas, or “partners,” as per the Starbucks corporate language, demanded $15 per hour wages, more reliable schedules in order to prevent understaffing, and better benefits. Since the original Starbucks Workers Union (SBWU) in Buffalo, upwards of 250 locations across the nation have followed suit, including around 25 in Oregon. One of the busiest and most prominent stores in the Portland area in Pioneer Courthouse Square has recently filed for a union.
On Jan. 17, 2023, workers at the Pioneer Square location (also known as Store #401) wrote a letter to Howard Schultz, Chairman and CEO of Starbucks, to “state [their] intent to form a union.” Store #401 outlined their main concerns in the letter, mentioning a high rate of incidents involving the public and unsafe individuals at the store, better staffing, and “more hours and policies that reflect the day to day realities of Starbucks employees.” Maddy Broom, a Store Organizing Committee member for the union at Store #401, states that “it is important for Pioneer Square to unionize so that [the employees of the store] can have a collective voice to advocate for [themselves] and a seat at the table.” She continues, “our store makes hundreds of thousands of dollars every month while we deal with unpredictable schedules, inconsistent rule enforcement, high incident rates and management who have not meaningfully engaged with our concerns.”
On Jan. 29, 2023, the workers of Store #401 held a rally in and around the square, while the store remained open. The flier for the rally requested of participants that “if [they] get coffee, make sure to give [their] name as ‘Union Strong’ or ‘Union Yes,’” as well as “be respectful and tip [their] baristas.” The FAQ page on the website for the greater international SBWU states that “[they] are pro-Starbucks and pro-union,” asserting that the demand to unionize is intended only to improve working conditions and quality of life for on-the-floor partners at Starbucks stores. They continue to say that many partners have devoted their lives to the company and want to see improvement in a company they love; workers with less seniority have expressed wanting to create an environment that can foster a “sustainable career” via the adoption of a union.
Store #401 has yet to negotiate their contract and have it ratified, and appears to have an “Open” status on a list of union action in Starbucks stores on unionelections.org, a website that displays data and election statuses for unions across the nation. 278 stores across the nation have been able to successfully unionize, and that is the outcome the majority of the time; 55 votes for store unions have failed since the first store in Buffalo in 2021. At the time of writing, only two stores in Oregon have failed the vote to unionize, of the approximately 30 that have attempted to in the state. Broom remarked that the response from the public during the rally had been overwhelmingly positive, and that few managers at Store #401 have reacted to the call for a union, besides one manager who threw away a few rally posters that were left in the break area.
The Starbucks company has been notoriously anti-union, stating that there is no need for them on any level, according to a National Public Radio article by Andrea Hsu. In May 2022 Schultz rolled out raises and new benefits for partners, “including faster sick time accrual, expanded training opportunities and credit card tipping,” according to Hsu. Schultz told shareholders at the time that “[Starbucks does] not have the same freedom to make these improvements at locations that have a union or where union organizing is underway,” excluding unions from receiving the new benefits, in a tactic that some organizers have identified as union-busting.
Despite the obstacles, the odds seem to trend in the favor of the union for Store #401, and workers hope to gain more certainty and security from the decision. Organizers remain hopeful that the company will recognize their concerns and begin to take actions to improve working conditions. Until then, organizers will continue to rally and organize new stores to join the SBWU.
