GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Employees at a Green Bay Starbucks participated in a national strike on one of the company’s busiest days of the year.
Thursday marked Starbucks’ annual Red Cup Day — when the company gives customers ordering holiday drinks a free, reusable cup with their order.
It also marked the largest labor campaign since some Starbucks stores began their unionization efforts last year. Of Starbucks’ 9,000-plus U.S. stores, over 100 went on strike Thursday.
The Starbucks on Auto Plaza Way and Main Street in Green Bay, which has petitioned to unionize, was one of those stores. The strike forced the store to close at 2 p.m. — seven hours earlier than normal.
Starbucks Workers United says it’s trying to get the company to the negotiating table for better pay, more consistent schedules and higher staffing levels.
Charles Poulter — who has worked at Starbucks for six years now — says it’s time for Starbucks to fulfill its end of the bargain. The barista and union organizer said that Starbucks has said it would negotiate since the unionization effort began.
But Poulter cited canceled meetings as well as representatives showing up late and leaving early.
“We are on strike today to stand in solidarity with the rest of the union, to protest the unfair labor practices of the company and specifically that Starbucks has not come to the table to negotiate in good faith like they said they will.”
The Main Street store was the only Green Bay Starbucks to strike on Thursday. Poulter says the next closest store to strike was in Madison.
The Green Bay store will be voting on its unionization near the end of the month.
Starbucks said it is aware of the walkouts and respects employees’ right to lawfully protest. It noted the protests are taking place at only a fraction of its stores.
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