Starbucks union asks coffee giant to extend pay hikes, benefits to unionized stores
Source: CNBC
By Kate Rogers
With pay increases set to kick in at Starbucks cafes around the U.S. on Monday, labor organizers are asking the coffee giant to extend the benefits to unionized stores as well without going through the bargaining process.
The request comes after Starbucks announced in May that it would hike wages for workers and add other benefits such as credit card tipping by late this year. But the Seattle-based coffee chain said it wouldn’t offer the enhanced benefits to workers at unionized stores because it needs to go through bargaining to make such changes.
In a letter to Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz obtained by CNBC, Workers United said the company can legally offer benefits to employees at unionized stores without bargaining, as long as the union agrees. The letter notes other companywide benefits announced in recent months, including faster sick time accrual and medical travel reimbursement for employees seeking abortions or gender-reaffirming care.
“Workers United refuses to stand by while Starbucks cynically promises new benefits only to non-unionized workers and withholds them from our members,” states the letter from Lynne Fox, president of Workers United, to Schultz last month.
Starbucks Workers United t-shirts hang outside while unionized workers strike for unfair labor practices outside a Starbucks location on 874 Commonwealth Avenue in the Brookline neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, US, on Tuesday, July 19, 2022.
Scott Brauer | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/08/01/starbucks-union-asks-coffee-giant-to-extend-pay-hikes-benefits-to-unionized-stores.html
