Starbucks, Workers United made ‘significant progress’ in this week’s contract talks

Starbucks
and
Workers
United,
representing
roughly
400
of
its
cafes,
said
Friday
in
a
joint
release
that
they
made “significant
progress”
in
their
contract
talks
this
week.

The
two
parties
discussed
a
process
to
resolve
grievances,
details
related
to
the
union’s
representation
of
Starbucks
baristas,
and
other
topics
on
Wednesday
and
Thursday
in
Atlanta,
according
to
the
press
release.

The
two-day
session
marked
the
first
time
in
nearly
a
year
that
Starbucks
and
Workers
United
came
to
the
bargaining
table.
It
followed
a
February
announcement
that
the
two
sides
were
ending
their
bitter
stalemate.

The
coffee
giant
spent
more
than
two
years
battling
the
union,
which
is
an
affiliate
of
the
Service
Employees
International
Union,
or
SEIU.
Workers
United
has
broadly
pushed
for
higher
wages
and
more
consistent
scheduling,
among
a
range
of
other
priorities.

This
week’s
talks
are
the
closest
that
any
of
the
unionized
locations,
which
make
up
a
small
fraction
of
Starbucks’
total
U.S.
footprint,
have
come
to
a
collective
bargaining
agreement.

Yet,
there’s
still
a
long
road
ahead.

“There’s
more
to
do,
but
we
are
committed
to
working
together,”
both
sides
said
in
a
joint
statement.

Starbucks
and
the
union
plan
to
meet
again
in
late
May
to
keep
working
on
the
framework
that
will
inform
every
single-store
contract,
according
to
the
release.
Individual
stores
will
still
have
to
negotiate
and
ratify
their
contracts
once
that
foundation
has
been
built.

Labor
laws
do
not
require
that
the
employer
and
union
reach
a
collective
bargaining
agreement,
only
that
both
bargain
in
good
faith.
After
a
year,
workers
who
lose
faith
in
the
union
can
petition
to
decertify,
putting
a
ticking
clock
on
negotiations. 

Correction:
This
article
has
been
updated
to
reflect
that
Starbucks
and
Workers
United
represent
about
400
cafes.
An
earlier
version
misstated
the
number.