Developments with Starbucks Strike

The union at Starbucks, Starbucks Workers United, has become frustrated that it has not been able to negotiate (on its desired terms, of course) a collective bargaining agreement with any Starbucks location.  The union has been in negotiations with Starbucks for more than 18 months.  Although technically each location has its own negotiations, the union has been trying to negotiate over some type of national framework for negotiations.  In less than 400 of Starbucks’s total of over 13,700 locations, unions have won an NLRB-conducted union election.  

Although the union claims the company has been “stonewalling” them at the bargaining table for more than six months, the union has rejected Starbucks’s contract proposals including annual raises.  The union claims Starbucks has only guaranteed annual raises of 2%, and doesn’t agree that employees will get enough hours of work to qualify for benefits.  Starbucks, in turn, claims it already offers “the best job in retail,” with barista pay averaging over $19 per hour, and total compensation over $30 an hour when counting benefits. 

Reportedly, around 3,000 workers have been on strike at more than 30-40 locations nationwide for almost a month now.  In New York City, about a dozen baristas were arrested outside the Empire State Building, where the police asked the picketers to stop blocking entrances.  The union has attracted political support with New York City Mayor Zohran Mandani and Sen. Bernie Sanders walking the picket line. 

This article is part of our January 2026 Newsletter. 

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