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Submitted on Thu, 01/10/2008 - 3:17pm
By KRIS MAHER, Wall Street Journal - January 9, 2008
A series of emails by Starbucks Corp. managers sheds light on the
company's efforts to thwart union organizing among its baristas.
The emails, which are part of a labor-dispute proceeding in New York
and were reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, open a rare window onto
the company's labor relations practices. Labor experts not involved
with the case said the activity is not illegal. But the emails could
prove embarrassing because they show managers using various methods to
identify pro-union employees.
Submitted on Tue, 01/01/2008 - 4:00pm
On Friday, December 21st, around a dozen area IWW members,
overwhelmingly Starbucks Baristas, gathered outside of 1 of around 4
Dupont Circle Starbucks, braving the harsh winter elements in favor of
abolishing the wage system. Their mission: reveal the Starbucks PR
facade for what it is. Starbucks talks the social responsibility talk
but they employ fewer with healthcare than even Walmart, so often the
target of liberal scorn. A union members words are pertinent:
"I'm a mother of four and my Starbucks wage puts me well below the poverty line,"
Submitted on Tue, 01/01/2008 - 3:01pm
Starbucks' Communique Followed by the Statement of the IWW Starbucks Workers Union
Thank you for contacting Starbucks Coffee Company. We appreciate your writing to us with your concerns about holiday pay for our partners (employees) working on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
Submitted on Thu, 12/20/2007 - 10:19pm
Make January 21, 2008, the first year Starbucks pays baristas the same holiday premium on Martin Luther King Day that it pays for several other federal holidays to baristas who work.
The Union's Call
December 14, 2007- The IWW Starbucks Workers Union (SWU) called today for the world’s largest coffee chain to honor slain civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by paying workers a holiday premium on the federal holiday named for him. While Starbucks claims a commitment to racial diversity and pays a holiday premium on federal holidays including the Fourth of July and New Year’s Day, baristas receive no added compensation for working through the MLK Day holiday...CONTINUE READING
Submitted on Thu, 12/20/2007 - 10:16pm
Dear Starbucks Union Activists,
Please join the IWW Starbucks Workers Union call for the coffee giant to honor Martin Luther King Day in 2008 by paying the same holiday premium that it pays for several other federal holidays to baristas who work.
While Starbucks claims a commitment to racial diversity and pays a holiday premium on federal holidays including the Fourth of July and New Year's Day, baristas receive no added compensation for working through the MLK Day holiday.
-Urge Starbucks to pay the holiday premium on January 21st by participating in the SWU E-Mail Action at http://www.starbucksunion.org/node/1919
-For more action ideas and to learn more about the SWU's MLK Day Initiative log on to http://www.starbucksunion.org/node/1914