Starbucks gives out new benefits, leaves out union employees
Nov 7, 2023, 12:05 PM
Starbucks said it will improve pay and benefits for most hourly workers in the U.S. starting Jan. 1.
But the company said if any workers are part of a union by then, they won’t get the new perks unless they’ve worked out contracts with the pay raise language approved, a sign of the continuing tension between the Seattle coffee giant and the union trying to organize its U.S. stores.
Workers United rejected that claim and said it would file unfair labor practice charges against Starbucks with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).
“Withholding benefits from unionized stores is against the law,” the union said.
The NLRB said at least 366 U.S. Starbucks stores have voted to unionize since 2021. But Starbucks and the Workers United union have yet to reach a labor agreement at any of those stores.
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Starbucks’ fiscal year ended with record sales. The company said it will increase wages — which currently average $17.50 per hour — starting Jan. 1. Employees at both union and non-union stores who have worked four years or less will get raises of 3% or 4% depending on years of service.
Employees who have worked five years or more will be eligible for a 5% increase, but since that’s a new benefit, it must be negotiated with Workers United and is therefore not available to unionized stores, the company said.
Starbucks said it is also shortening the time hourly employees must work before accruing vacation days from one year to 90 days. That benefit is also only available to workers at non-unionized stores.
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Starbucks’ actions go against a September ruling by an administrative law judge for the NLRB, who ruled that the company acted illegally last fall when it raised pay only for non-union workers. Starbucks has appealed that ruling, saying NLRB’s standards don’t allow employers to make unilateral changes in the wages or benefits of unionized employees.
Contributing: Dee-Ann Durbin, AP Business Writer
