'People are seeing that Starbucks is willing to kind of mess with their livelihood to prevent this union, and that scares people. He said the additional benefits not being offered to unionized stores has both intimidated and motivated people, and that better pay is important in this economic climate. Tyler Keeling works as barista trainer at a Starbucks in Lakewood, California, which has voted to unionize, and also is organizing other stores with Starbucks Workers United. We respect our partners rights to organize but believe that working directly together – without a 3rd party – is the best way to elevate the partner experience at Starbucks,' Starbucks spokesperson Reggie Borges told CNBC. 'Our focus is on working directly with our partners to reimagine the future of Starbucks. Legal experts predict the benefits battle will wind up before the NLRB.

The union has said the coffee giant is illegally withholding the benefits from cafes, but Starbucks maintains it cannot offer new benefits without negotiations for union shops. In May, the company announced enhanced pay hikes for non-unionized stores and extra training for baristas that went into effect in August after holding feedback sessions with its employees. Since interim CEO Howard Schultz returned to the company in April, Starbucks has adopted a more aggressive strategy to oppose the union push and invest in its workers. 'And they're ready to expect more in their work life and demand dignity and respect on the job.' Starbucks petitions slow down 'I think it's the collective action that you're seeing that isn't going to get stopped by whatever the recessionary forces are, because working people have walked through fire during this pandemic, showed up every day to work, in many cases risk their lives,' said Mary Kay Henry, president of the Service Employees International Union. Whether it's petitions or other wins, like a California law that creates a council to govern the fast-food industry labor conditions, 2022 has been a banner year for organizing. 'I don't see that we are in that position at this point, because employers are still having a really hard time filling jobs, the baby boomers have retired and all evidence points to the fact that the labor market is going to be favorable to employees in the near future.'įor now, advocates believe the momentum will be hard to slow down. 'I think it will certainly make it more difficult if we do have a recession, where it's harder for employees to find other employment, they be less likely to take the risk of unionization,' Creighton said. If the economy cools off, the union movement may follow suit, according to Catherine Creighton, director of Cornell University's Industrial and Labor Relations branch in Buffalo. The announcement comes ahead of its annual Prime Day promotion and a busy holiday season, as well as a union election in Albany next month.Īs the Federal Reserve continues to aggressively raise interest rates to fight inflation and cool down the economy, market watchers, economists and executives are warning of a potential recession in 2023. For example, Amazon said on Wednesday that it's hiking average hourly pay from $18 to more than $19 for warehouse and delivery workers. The shift in the balance of power has led some employers to hike pay and enhance other benefits. REI did not respond to a request for comment from CNBC. 'Right now in the retail space, we have so many more jobs than we do workers, and that puts disproportionate power in our hands right now because the company needs them almost as much as we need them,' said Hannah Smith, an employee at the recently unionized REI store in Berkeley, California.

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