Starbucks employees stand on a picket line in solidarity with striking SAG-AFTRA and WGA members outside Netflix Studios on July 28, 2023 in Los Angeles, California, before a Starbucks employees board a Starbucks union bus.
Mario Tama | Getty Images
Starbucks Workers’ unions representing about 500 cafes said in a joint statement on Friday they had made “significant progress” in contract talks this week.
The two parties discussed the process for resolving grievances, details related to union representation for Starbucks baristas and other topics on Wednesday and Thursday in Atlanta, according to a news release.
The two-day meeting marks the first time Starbucks and the union have come to the bargaining table in nearly a year. The two sides previously announced an end to the painful standoff in February.
The coffee giant has spent more than two years fighting the union, an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). Workers’ unions have pushed broadly for higher wages and more consistent scheduling, among a host of other priorities.
This week’s negotiations are the closest any union locations, which make up just a fraction of Starbucks’ total U.S. footprint, have come to a collective bargaining agreement.
However, there is still a long way to go.
“There is more work to be done, but we are committed to working together,” the two sides said in a joint statement.
Starbucks and the union plan to meet again in late May to continue developing a framework that will inform each single-store contract, according to the release. Once the foundation is established, individual stores still need to negotiate and approve contracts.
Labor law does not require employers and unions to reach a collective bargaining agreement, only that both parties negotiate in good faith. After a year, workers who have lost faith in their unions can apply for decertification, bringing a sense of urgency to negotiations.
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