Starbucks: employees declare strike in defense of LGBTQ+ – 06/23/2023 – Market

More than 150 stores and 3,500 workers at Starbucks will go on strike next week across the United States, the union representing the chain’s baristas said on Friday, after claiming the company banned Pride Month decorations. LGBTQ+ in their coffee shops.

The union said earlier this month that the company pulled Pride Month decorations and flags at several stores. Workers took to social media to express outrage.

Starbucks on Friday denied the allegations, which it called “false information”. The company said last week that “there has been no change to any policy on this matter” and that it still encourages store managers to celebrate Pride Month as long as store safety guidelines are followed.

Several major US brands have faced backlash from conservatives over LGBTQ+ decorations and, since then, criticism from gay rights groups for insufficient community support after the companies caved under pressure from conservatives.

Retailer Target has moved storefronts and even pulled some merchandise from shelves, and sales of Anheuser-Busch InBev’s Bud Light beer have declined in recent weeks due to marketing efforts involving the transgender community.

Starbucks Workers United said on Friday in a tweet that the Seattle Roastery, located just nine blocks from the first Starbucks store in Seattle’s Pike Place Market, was leading the nationwide strike.

Starbucks, which runs about 9,000 company-owned locations across the United States, has seen employees at more than 300 stores vote to unionize since the end of 2021, demanding better pay and benefits.

Today, the company also faces hundreds of complaints, accusing it of illegal labor practices, such as firing union members and closing stores during labor campaigns.