Coffee Giant on Trial in New York, Hit with Complaint in Michigan.

Coffee Giant on Trial in New York, Hit with Complaint
in Michigan

Grand Rapids, MI- Still mired in a lengthy labor trial
in New York City, Starbucks must contend with a fresh
complaint from the National Labor Relations Board
(NLRB) over anti-union activity. After an
investigation of charges filed by the IWW Starbucks
Workers Union, the NLRB has accused the coffee chain
yesterday of threatening Grand Rapids baristas with
termination for joining the union and denying access
to the store bulletin board in an effort to interfere
with co-worker communications regarding the union. In
addition to the complaint issued yesterday, the NLRB
is continuing to investigate whether Starbucks
violated its 2006 settlement obligations by other
anti-union conduct in Grand Rapids.

“The Labor Board investigation has confirmed what
baristas here already knew,” said Cole Dorsey, an IWW
member and Starbucks barista in Grand Rapids. “When
Starbucks employees organize to have their
contribution to the company recognized, corporate
responds with an ugly union-busting campaign.”

Starbucks is currently standing trial on a federal
labor complaint in New York over its large-scale
operation against the Industrial Workers of the World,
which has been gaining members from Starbucks stores
around the United States. That trial is delving into
allegations that Starbucks fired three workers in
retaliation for union activity, surveilled union
members, and discriminated against union supporters,
among other things.

“Starbucks union-busting, led by the company’s most
senior leadership in Seattle, has reared its ugly head
in Michigan,” said Daniel Gross, an IWW member and one
of the three baristas in the New York trial fired for
union activity. “When will the company realize that
workers have the right to have their voice respected?”

Starbucks has misled many people into believing it’s a
decent place to work, but the facts show otherwise.
Starbucks employees struggle with the combination of a
low-wage of around $7 or $8 per hour and a work
schedule with no guaranteed hours. Starbucks insures
a lower percentage of its workforce than widely and
rightly criticized Wal-Mart- 40.9% of Starbucks
employees have company health insurance vs. 47% at
Wal-Mart.

The IWW Starbucks Workers Union connects baristas with
each other and with community members to ensure their
voice is respected at work. The union does not seek
government certification, preferring instead to
address
issues of concerns directly to management. Using
direct pressure, the SWU has played a substantial role
in wage increases and securing hours for many
Starbucks employees. In addition, the union has
remedied a wide array of grievances from religious
discrimination to vermin infestation through a variety
of creative tactics.

Founded in 1905, the Industrial Workers of the World
is an independent union for all workers.