The unions are a symptom of a larger problem

The Struggle of the Union: A Call to Rejoin the Starbucks Sector, or Why Starbucks hasn’t Solved Its Successes, Revisited

Schultz, who sat down for a far-reaching conversation with CNN’s Poppy Harlow in February, covering the union, relations with China and the US economy, said he didn’t return to Starbucks because of the union efforts. But he did see the labor movement as a sign that things had gone sour at Starbucks, and for young people in general.

“I’ve talked to thousands of our Starbucks partners,” he told Harlow. “I was shocked, stunned to hear the loneliness, the anxiety, the fracturing of trust in government, fracturing of trust in companies, fracturing of trust in families, the lack of hope in terms of opportunity.”

Nearly 300 stores have voted to unionize despite Starbucks actions, according to the NLRB. There are about 9,300 company-operated Starbucks store in the US.

“We are hopeful that Laxman Narasimhan will chart a new path with the union and work with us to make Starbucks the company we know it can be,” Michelle Eisen, a Starbucks worker and union organizer, said in a statement this week.

But as he prepares to step down from the CEO role, that reputation is being challenged, in large part because of the company’s steadfast opposition to the union. But Schultz, who doesn’t think fighting the workers’ unionization effort will tinge the company’s legacy, is not backing down.

Starbucks has denied the claims that it used union busting tactics and that it refused to come to the bargaining table.

The Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee asked Starbucks to give testimony in regards to labor laws. Starbucks announced that its chief public affairs officer would attend instead after Schultz declined.

In the letter, Narasimhan also discussed how he plans to continue the reinvention plan laid out by Schultz over the summer. Starbucks has made over $1 billion in investments aimed at updating trainings, improving equipment and raising wages and adding other benefits for non-union employees, among other things, to help modernize the brand and make it more relevant.

When Schultz re-joined the company last year, he spent months visiting with employees as part of a listening tour that helped him develop a new roadmap for the company, which he said had “lost its way.”

Especially during the pandemic, “some decisions were made that I would not have made,” he said, without specifying which. When asked for more details, a spokesperson pointed to the resumption of training programs in 2022.

But that’s likely not the case, said Rebecca Givan, associate professor of labor studies and employment relations at Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations.

How does China confront the United States? Starbucks in China: a triumphant adversary for China, a friend of America, and for good, for good

“I’m sure there’s a large number of people who are interested [in unionizing], but afraid,” she said. “We know, just from general polling data, that many, many workers are interested in organizing collectively or in being represented collectively.” She said this was especially true among younger workers.

While Starbucks deals with the union effort at home, it also faces challenges in China, its key growth market. In the three months through January sales at Starbucks locations open at least 13 months in China plummeted 29% due to Covid restrictions.

“I don’t believe China is an enemy of America,” Schultz told Harlow, describing it instead as a “fierce adversary, especially economically.” He thinks there needs to be a good relationship between the Chinese government and the American government.

Starbucks exited the country last year because of Russia’s attack on Ukraine, and Schultz doesn’t see the company ever going back. He believes Starbucks has left Russia for good.

Source: https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/21/business/howard-schultz-unions/index.html

Putting a Sense in Starbucks: What is the Best Place to be a Partner at a Coffee Shop, a Place to Work for the Customers and Families?

Back in the United States, Schultz is anticipating a “soft landing” for the economy. He said that he has great confidence in the US economy. “I don’t see a recession coming.” He believes that inflation has peaked.

In order to reinvigorate our culture around what it means to be a partner at Starbucks, we will need to make some changes. He will be an advocate for the partners and culture.

I’ve learned a lot about what it’s like to wear a green apron, with you. You’ve welcomed me into our stores, trained me in how to be a barista … all to help me deeply understand what we do, how we do it, and the challenges and opportunities facing us,” he wrote.

I plan to work in the stores for a half day each month to keep us close to the culture and our customers.

“With our reinvention plan introduced last year, we will continue our focus on improving the store, customer, and of course, the partner experience,” Narasimhan wrote, using the word “partner” to refer to an employee, as Starbucks does. He said that the brand should include more digital offerings for customers, moving more quickly, and being less wasteful as well as furthering its reach through coffee. A new line of coffee is made from olive oil.

Starbucks is trying to fight off a wave of unionization as Narasimhan takes over the company in a tense period during the annual shareholder meeting. That effort has been ugly at times, casting a shadow over Starbucks’ reputation as a progressive company.

Starbucks previously said about Rosas’ order that it is “considering all options to obtain further legal review,” adding that “we believe the decision and the remedies ordered are inappropriate given the record in this matter.”