The National Labor Relations Board rejected Starbucks Corp.'s bid to quash the counting of unionization ballots from three of its upstate New York restaurants, paving the way for a Thursday vote count that could create the first labor foothold among the coffee chain's thousands of corporate-run U.S. locations.
"We just want a voice in our workplace and despite the money Starbucks has spent on lawyers trying to stop that, the NLRB is telling us we have a right to this vote," Jaz Brisack, a Starbucks employee and activist at one of the stores that has voted, said in a statement.
When asked about the ruling, a Starbucks representative referred to an open letter to employees issued earlier Tuesday by Starbucks Chief Executive Officer Kevin Johnson, who wrote regarding the elections that "we respect the process that is underway and, independent of any outcome in these elections, we will continue to stay true to our mission and values."
Starbucks shares rose 2.6% to close at $116.26 in New York trading.
The coffee chain had asked the board to overrule an acting regional director's Oct. 28 ruling that green-lit store-by-store elections at three Buffalo-area sites where workers petitioned in August to unionize. That decision meant the company would be required to collectively bargain if a majority of voters at any one of those locations cast ballots for the union.
Starbucks argued that any election should instead involve at least all 20 of the region's stores, meaning that the union, Workers United, would win only if it secured a majority of votes from the much larger group.
Starbucks had also pleaded unsuccessfully with the board to intervene and quash the mailing of ballots last month. Instead, the labor board sent ballots to employees Nov. 10, which are due to be received back by today and counted the next day. Workers United, an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union, has more recently also petitioned for unionization votes at three more New York sites, and another in Arizona.
Starbucks has never had unionized workers at its U.S. stores in its 50-year history. The Seattle-based company says its 8,000 company-owned U.S. stores function best when it has flexibility and can work directly with employees.
Starbucks has said around 111 employees are eligible to vote at the three Buffalo stores.
Starbucks attorney Alan Model said last week that 45.5% of baristas and shift supervisors in the Buffalo area worked at more than one store in the company's 2021 fiscal year, which ended Oct. 3. That helps the company meet shifting customer demand at its locations, Model said.
"It's by design, not happenstance, that you can walk into any store and enjoy the same food and beverage in any store, and its partners can work at any store at any time," Model told a hearing officer from the labor board.
But Ian Hayes, an attorney for Workers United, said the labor board has already determined that individual store union elections are appropriate. Hayes says store managers handle operations in any given store.
"Labor relations takes place at the store level," he said. Hayes also said it's uncommon for baristas to work at different stores.
Information for this article was contributed by Josh Eidelson of Bloomberg News (WPNS) and by Dee-Ann Durbin of The Associated Press.