Starbucks has actively fought unionization at its stores for decades, saying its stores function best when it works directly with employees.
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Starbucks workers have voted to unionize at a store in Buffalo, New York over the company’s objections, pointing the way to a new labor model for the 50-year old coffee giant. The National Labor Relations Board said Thursday that workers voted 19-8 in favor of a union at one of three locations in Buffalo. A second store rejected the union in a vote of 12-8. A third store is still being counted. If the labor board certifies the vote — a process expected to take about a week — it would be the first for any Starbucks-owned store in the U.S. to unionize. Starbucks has actively fought unionization at its stores for decades, saying its stores function best when it works directly with employees. Workers watching the vote count over Zoom on a big screen at a union office in Buffalo erupted into cheers and chants of “Elmwood, Elmwood, Elmwood!” when the results of that location were announced, jumping up and down and hugging each other. “We still made history,” barista Casey Moore told the others watching as it became clear the second store had voted down the union effort. Workers at all three stores began voting by mail last month on whether they wanted to be represented by Workers United, an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union.
