Starbucks CEO Brian Nicol told FOX Business why the company has strengthened its parental leave benefits.
Unionized Starbucks workers voted to authorize a strike.
“Breaking News: 98% of SBWU baristas voted to authorize ULP's strike if necessary. Emergency Campaign Thursday at 8:30pm PT / 5:30pm ET days before the call,” Starbucks Workers United said Tuesday on X.
The potential strike authorization comes ahead of a meeting scheduled for Tuesday between Starbucks Workers United and the company to conduct further negotiations.
Unions argued that Starbucks has not yet proposed a comprehensive economic package while hundreds of legal disputes over unfair labor practices remain unresolved. The union has also advocated for higher wages, more staff and improved schedules.
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A Starbucks barista behind the counter in Charlotte, North Carolina (Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images/Getty Images)
A potential strike date has not yet been determined by unionized workers.
Thousands of Starbucks employees at more than 525 stores belong to SBWU.
“The time is now to complete the basic framework, including meaningful investment in baristas, and resolve the unfair labor practice charges,” SBWU bargaining representative Sylvia Baldwin said in a statement.
“We are ready to focus on the future by resolving the ULP and ensuring we have the support and protection we need to do our jobs well and thrive,” she said. “We know that baristas are critical to the operations of our companies, which is why we bring practical solutions to the table.”
A drink outside a Starbucks coffee shop on January 30, 2024 in Albany, New York. (Angus Mordaunt/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
“It's unfortunate that the union is considering a strike instead of focusing on very productive negotiations,” a Starbucks spokesperson told FOX Business. “Since April, we have scheduled and attended more than eight multi-day bargaining sessions in which we agreed to resolve dozens of issues, including many economic issues that Workers United representatives said were important to us. Significant agreement was reached on 30 topics.
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The spokesperson also said the coffee house chain “will continue to exist.”[s] We are committed to working together to reach a final framework agreement.”
Starbucks Coffee sign in Warsaw, Poland, July 31, 2024. (Alexander Kalka/NurPhoto via Getty Images/Getty Images)
The union and Starbucks began working on a “foundational framework” in April, and the two sides most recently met in September. The meeting took place shortly after Blaine Nichol took over as CEO of the coffee house chain.
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Nicol announced Monday that it will “more than double” the amount of paid parental leave it provides to U.S. store employees who work an average of 20 hours or more per week. The expanded benefits include up to 18 weeks for biological parents and 12 weeks for non-biological parents and will go into effect in the spring.
As of the end of September, the company had approximately 361,000 employees, including 211,000 employees in Starbucks-operated stores, corporate support, and other areas in the United States.
Reuters contributed to this report.
