Students rally at more than 40 US campuses to back Starbucks workers' boycott

Union nears five years without a first contract at more than 700 stores

Starbucks baristas, students and elected officials are holding rallies at more than 40 college campuses across the United States on Thursday, in support of the Starbucks Workers United boycott campaign as the union nears five years of deadlock with the company over contract negotiations. The events span private and public universities, including the University of Pennsylvania, Northwestern and the University of Washington.

Starbucks Workers United is seeking better pay and stronger staffing levels, including a $17-an-hour minimum wage for baristas and a minimum staffing of three workers per store. The union has called on the public to boycott Starbucks until its first contract is reached.

More than 700 Starbucks stores have voted to unionize, representing more than 12,000 baristas. New labor unions typically take more than 450 days to negotiate and reach a first contract. It has been nearly five years since the first Starbucks store, in Buffalo, New York, voted to unionize in December 2021.

The union began focusing on college campuses in 2023, calling on campuses to cancel their contracts with Starbucks in protest against the company’s response to union-organizing efforts. Cornell University and Pomona College did not renew their contracts with the company, and UCLA stopped offering Starbucks products in its cafes.

The union push comes ahead of the company’s busy holiday season, including Starbucks’ Red Cup Day on November 17, when customers receive a reusable holiday cup.

Andrew Trinklein, a barista participating in an event at the University of Texas at Austin, said, “Starbucks has been fueling the working class for decades, but they’re failing the workers that fuel their profits.” “We’re really trying to push and get support from college campus students… in joining the boycott,” he said.

His store recently unionized, and Trinklein said he was shocked by the company’s hiring of pricey union-avoidance consultants. Starbucks has reportedly spent tens of millions of dollars related to union avoidance, though it has not disclosed the full costs relating to its union-organizing efforts.

Trinklein noted that baristas are currently employed at will, with no just-cause job security protections. “Right now it’s just a toss-up whether we have a job tomorrow or not. Say they don’t like something that we’re doing – say we don’t write on a cup. We could be fired for it tomorrow,” he said, referring to the company’s policy requiring employees to write friendly messages on cups for customers. “But with this contract, that won’t be possible. We’ll have protections from stuff like that.”

Efforts to pressure Starbucks to negotiate were temporarily paused when the union and the company reached an agreement on a path forward in February 2024. Negotiations broke down shortly after Brian Niccol took over as Starbucks CEO.

Niccol previously served as CEO of Chipotle from 2018 to 2024. Under his tenure, the company agreed to pay $240,000 to former workers as part of a settlement over a store closing in Maine after it unionized, which the National Labor Relations Board said was illegal. Chipotle has denied wrongdoing.

In recent years, Starbucks has been found guilty of violating federal labor law by the National Labor Relations Board in several cases regarding its responses to union-organizing efforts.

In a statement, a Starbucks spokesperson said, “Workers United represents approximately 5% of our US partners, and we believe actions like these divert attention from the work at the bargaining table.” In an email, a company spokesperson said, “Our partners and coffeehouses are focused on bringing the joy of the holidays to life for our customers. Based on our experience with prior similar actions, we don’t expect any meaningful disruption and look forward to serving our customers through the holidays.”

The spokesperson noted that “according to independent research, Starbucks offers the best overall pay and benefits in the industry, worth on average more than $30 per hour,” citing comprehensive healthcare, 100% upfront tuition coverage, company stock and up to 18 weeks of paid parental leave for partners working as little as 20 hours a week. The company also said its turnover is among the industry’s lowest and that nearly 3 million people applied to “wear the green apron” last year.