Starbucks employees, former baristas, and Palestinian advocacy groups nationwide were boycotting Starbucks in response to “unfair” labor practices and a lawsuit over a social media post shared by the union in support of Palestinian rights.
A local boycott event took place in Tempe in November on Red Cup Day, the company’s largest sales event of the season, to protest work and pay conditions.
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The event was organized in partnership with other on-campus and off-campus student groups to show support for Palestinian territories as combat intensifies and the war’s death toll continues to increase.
Some union and organization leaders in Arizona were also protesting the same-day cancellation of U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib’s speaker event at Arizona State University last month.
How boycott has affected business:Starbucks is laying off workers in the Middle East
Why did Starbucks workers go on strike?
Part of the boycott was the union-organized “Red Cup Rebellion,” a nationwide strike that took place on Nov. 16. to protest work and pay conditions.
Following last year’s strike on the same day, Starbucks Workers United organized a walkout again this year as well as local events for those who wanted to show support for the union’s demands.
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The strike came just about a week after the company announced pay raises and new benefits for employees in the U.S.
The company announced that next year employees will see an increase in pay, with at least a 3% increase for eligible tenured partners. Eligible partners with two to five years of service will get at least 4% and those with five or more years of service will get at least 5%.
Other benefits include accruing paid vacation time 90 days after hire, and new credential and certification programs.
Attendees at the Tempe event, which took place at the Starbucks Memorial Union on ASU campus, said they view the new benefits and pay increases as an achievement of union pressure.
“We alongside many campuses and organizations across the country will be joining in on the Red Cup rebellion,” the event description read. “We stand in solidarity with the Palestinians in their fight for liberation from settler colonialism! We stand in solidarity with the Starbucks workers in their fight for better pay and conditions!”
According to organizers, one of the main goals of the demonstration was to end the partnership between Starbucks and ASU so that Starbucks could not have store locations or sell its products on ASU campuses.
Yet, the group said it was not specifically advocating for the end of the College Achievement Program, which provides eligible Starbucks employees with full tuition coverage for a bachelor’s degree through Arizona State University’s online program.
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Demonstrators at the event told The Arizona Republic they were demanding the removal of Starbucks from all ASU campuses and ending ASU partnerships with companies that, according to the group, were complicit in the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.
The protest was also planned in response to the federal lawsuit filed by Starbucks against the union in Iowa over a pro-Palestinian post shared by a union social media account in the early days of the Hamas-Israel war, court records obtained by USA TODAY last month show.
What is the Starbucks lawsuit about?
The company sued for trademark infringement, arguing that the union post angered customers and damaged the company’s reputation because the union has “Starbucks” in its name and uses a similar logo.
In response, Starbucks Workers United filed its own lawsuit to protect its right to keep its logo and argued the company defamed the union by implying it supports terrorism.
Organizers at the Tempe event considered the lawsuit filed by Starbucks a strategy to censor the union and sabotage unionizing efforts, they told The Republic.
According to the union, which represents more than 360 stores in the U.S. and has more than 9,000 union partners, Starbucks has not reached labor agreements at any of its unionized stores.
The boycott also involved asking Starbucks customers to consider purchasing drinks at locally owned coffee shops if they want to support the union’s initiative and not buy gift cards during the holiday season.
Walking out:Starbucks employees protest ‘unfair’ labor practices nationwide on Red Cup Day
Source: https://t-tees.com
Category: WHY
