‘Your average ‘I’m in a job that I don’t like’ complaints’: KIRO host skeptical of Starbucks barista walkouts

Starbucks baristas walked off the job at multiple stores over the weekend, including one near the company’s new Nashville headquarters, even as the coffee giant posted record-breaking sales fueled by the return of its viral Unicorn Frappuccino.

Jim Dever, filling in on “The John Curley Show” on KIRO Newsradio alongside Angela Poe Russell, questioned whether the complaints behind the walkouts rise to the level that would typically justify union action.

“The complaints I’ve seen so far don’t seem to rise to that level of straight-out, in the eyes of a legal entity, abusive practices or discriminatory policies,” Dever said. “They seem more like your average ‘I’m in a job that I don’t like’ kind of complaints.”

Starbucks Workers United has been negotiating a contract that includes a $17-an-hour minimum wage, 4% annual raises, at least three baristas on the floor at all times, and a resolution to outstanding labor complaints filed with the National Labor Relations Board.

Angela Poe Russell says Starbucks went from ‘gold standard’ to walkouts

Russell pushed back, arguing that long-time employees have watched the company’s culture erode over the years.

“They were the gold standard in terms of benefits,” Russell said. “You had a CEO who didn’t want to call people employees. It was like, ‘They are partners.’ It was, ‘We’re going to help pay for college tuition, we’re going to give benefits.’ It was the place to work. So if you’ve been there a long time, the changes that have taken place would seem jarring.”

Russell acknowledged the broader question of whether Starbucks workers are treated differently from employees at McDonald’s or anywhere else, but said the line is clear when it comes to union-busting.

“When you start trying to do activities that are illegal in terms of busting up unions, or punishing people for trying to join a union, that’s over the line,” she said.

Dever agreed the law matters but said market forces, not malice, are driving most of the frustration.

“The problems these Starbucks workers are facing are very indicative of everything around the country right now,” Dever said.

The walkouts came during one of Starbucks’ biggest weekends ever. The company sold more than 2 million Unicorn Frappuccinos in two days, making Saturday its biggest North American company-operated sales day in history, CEO Brian Niccol said in a letter to employees.

Watch the full discussion in the video above.

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