Written by Matt P, Video and Photos by Margot P
‘Twas the strike before Christmas when all through the land,
Starbucks Workers United had made their demands,
Over pay, understaffing, respect and their rights,
Greedy bosses should regret they e’er picked this fight.
For months we had been hearing chatter from our comrades with Starbucks Workers United (SBWU) about their growing momentum. Each week brought more unionized stores, organizing goals surpassed and replaced with more ambitious ones. From the first stores they successfully organized in Buffalo only a few years ago, they have now exceeded 500. It feels as though a tide had turned, a dam had been broken.
Those of us who have worked in retail coffee and know how difficult it can be to organize in this space recognize how historic this feat has been. If you ask Starbucks workers about it, though, some would tell you it is not as hard as it seems. As one SBWU member Caitlin put it: “The idea of unionizing feels really frightening, it feels like a really big word, a really loaded word. […] But it doesn’t mean that much to unionize. If you are complaining with your coworkers about how much you hate your job, you’re like 60 or 70 percent of the way to having a union. So just go the extra mile. You are so close, you’ve gotten through most of the bad parts.” Decades of conditioning by the bosses to fear the boogeyman – the scary U-word – began to crumble as workers realized their experiences with poverty wages, understaffing, and workplace harassment were far too common to be merely personal problems. Get enough workers together regularly sharing their stories and grievances, and a union is almost certain to follow.
At the same time as Starbucks locations were being unionized left and right, there were contract negotiations taking place even though SBWU could not speak about it publicly. Despite the limited information, it was clear that Starbucks management was in a very different fight this time around. Bargaining, like any battle, depends critically on one’s perceived strength as much as actual, and it certainly appeared SBWU was lacking in neither.
The rank-and-file’s demands varied by store location, but there were some common refrains. Given Seattle’s high minimum wage, pay has been less of a concern here compared to other cities where wages are still far behind the cost of living, but the company’s offer on annual raises was nothing short of insulting. Conversely, Starbucks workers in very conservative parts of the country might rank employment protections and healthcare benefits as their top concern, especially for trans employees. Still other stores have demanded improved health and safety in lieu of the COVID-19 endemic.
Nonetheless, SBWU has been fighting to ensure every worker and workplace is heard at the bargaining table. As Caitlin put it: “Trans healthcare benefits are not something we are going to be fighting for so much for ourselves [here in Washington State] but for our siblings in those [conservative] areas […] We have a pretty wide range of things people are prioritizing for themselves and their states, but one of the most beautiful things about bargaining is that we are really good at balancing those priorities and finding the balance that’s going to benefit the most people while leaving no one behind.” It may sound like a broken record, but the old labor adage “an injury to one is an injury to all” still resonates in 2024 as it did in 1924.
Then came the news last week. Starbucks Workers United members had overwhelmingly voted to authorize a strike. Despite this clear mandate given by the rank-and-file to their bargaining team and the credible threat it now posed – i.e., industrial action – Starbucks management refused to budge. And so the evening of December 19, it was made official: Starbucks workers would be going on strike over the holiday weekend in several cities including right here in the company’s hometown of Seattle. Years of educating, agitating, and organizing workers would now give way to mobilizing members to the pickets.
The decision to take action by striking is no small affair as it is costly and is not without risks. Individual grit and determination are certainly important qualities to have, but above all else a strike requires the trust, confidence, and security only a community can provide, most especially one’s coworkers. As another Starbucks employee Mari explained: “My store has always been a fairly tight knit community, but it’s been a lot better after we unionized. We understand we are here for each other, and so people are much more free with reaching out with needs for support, or if managers are annoying or doing something illegal. There’s a lot of camaraderie and a sense of community.” At a time when many workers increasingly feel alienated and disempowered by their economic insecurity, the surest way to regain our sense of dignity and strength is by leaning on our coworkers and conversely letting them lean on us. The bosses want us divided and demoralized. But the workers united? We will not be defeated.
Once the pickets began, local community members including Seattle DSA sprang to action to lend their support not just in words but in actions. Coming off of months of strike support with the Boeing machinists and Seattle Art Museum’s Visual Service Officers, Seattle DSA’s Labor Working Group was already mobilizing members the night the strike was officially announced. Meanwhile, the People’s Breakfast pivoted to provide warm meals to picketers, building off its years of mutual aid work in the U District. Those of us close to the action have been making regular deliveries of needed materials: from hot coffee and homemade pastries to hand warmers and propane tanks for the space heaters. (Seattle Decembers are not exactly a pleasant time to be holding round-the-clock pickets.) The night owls amongst us have been helping to provide relief for the graveyard picket shifts, often the time of day in which deliveries are made and therefore a great opportunity to persuade delivery drivers to maybe reconsider crossing an active picket line. Let’s just say more than a few voluntarily chose to skip ahead on their early morning route.
At the time this is being written on Christmas Eve, the strike has spread from its original target stores to more than 300 in 45 states across the country. This comes amidst a national series of strikes by Amazon warehouse workers and delivery drivers in addition to years of increasing labor agitation nationally. While the recent elections came as a major blow to many, we must also look to these courageous workers and their spirited campaigning for inspiration and hope. The ruling class will never make concessions voluntarily without workers demonstrating their power including the undertaking of direct action. As picketers chanted recently: “Workers united, give ‘em holy hell! It’s not just our right but our duty to rebel!” The louder this refrain grows, the more workers will be encouraged to take their own initiative, and the more we have cause for hope.
This holiday season, give the gift of solidarity by going to a picket line near you and supporting a strike materially. I promise you it will help to alleviate any hopelessness that ails you.
