LOS ANGELES (KABC) — Starbucks is accused of illegally closing six locations in the Los Angeles area to suppress union organizing activity.
A regional director for the National Labor Relations Board filed a complaint this week alleging that Starbucks closed nearly two dozen stores across the country to discourage workers from unionizing.
The video shown in the media player above is from the 24/7 streaming channel ABC7 Los Angeles
“It's our legal right to unionize, and we're just trying to make the place better for everyone,” said Jesse de la Cruz, a former Starbucks employee. “And there's this giant that says, 'We're here for you and you're our partner,' and yet they're willing to destroy us if we want to do something.”
De la Cruz said he was forced to find another job after helping organize a union at a local Starbucks last year and is currently suing the company.
The new NLRB complaint says Starbucks must reopen 23 stores – six of them in Los Angeles – and provide back pay to workers affected by the closures.
Since two Starbucks stores first unionized in 2021, more than 350 have followed suit. But the coffee giant has consistently fought the labor movement and won dozens of court rulings against it for anti-union actions.
“Starbucks claims they welcome unionization, but it is obvious they have not,” De la Cruz said. “We’re fighting a giant.”
Starbucks declined to make a representative available to Eyewitness News for an interview, but said the six stores that closed in the L.A. area were not unionized and were instead closed for safety reasons.
“Each year, as a standard practice, we evaluate the store portfolio to determine where we can best meet the needs of our community and our customers. This includes opening new locations, identifying stores that need investment or renovation, and finding locations where an alternative format is available.” is necessary and in some cases we need to re-evaluate our footprint.
But De la Cruz said the new NLRB complaint shows that Starbucks union organizers are making progress.
“Needless to say, it was brutal,” De la Cruz said. “But it was a good, forward-looking campaign.”
The NLRB's determination is far from a final decision. The board will now meet with both sides to work out an agreement. If an agreement cannot be reached, an NLRB judge would have to make a decision.
But that wouldn't happen until August 2024.
Correction: An earlier version of this story said federal regulators had ordered Starbucks to reopen 23 stores. This still needs to be decided by a judge. The National Labor Relations Board will meet with both sides to negotiate an agreement to allow the company to reopen its stores.