On International Coffee Day, workers call on company to be an industry leader and fulfill its commitment to ensure workers' schedules are as consistent as their coffee
In honor of International Coffee Day on September 29th, Starbucks baristas will be reaching out to customers, co-workers, and corporate executives at Starbucks headquarters and across Seattle. Together with baristas across the country, they're calling on the company to step up and fulfill its promise to ensure every Starbucks worker has a stable, predictable schedule which respects that our time counts, too. Baristas' schedules should be as consistent as their coffee.
In some locations, baristas will also be writing #ourtimecounts on cups to generate conversation online about the campaign for weeks that work. They're calling for Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz to meet with employees to find solutions for scheduling problems like less than one-week's notice of schedules, hours that vary dramatically from week to week, clopenings, and other concerns.
Who: Starbucks baristas calling for fair scheduling practices across the company, joined by community supporters
What: Leaflet customers, fellow baristas, and corporate executives at Starbucks global headquarters and multiple Starbucks outlets across the city, and write #ourtimecounts on cups. More information here. Copies of flyers available online.
When: TUESDAY, September 29, 2015, beginning at 9:30 am.
Where: Starbucks Corporate Headquarters, 1st & Lander in SoDo. GPS address: 2401 Utah Ave S, Seattle, WA 98134.
Last year, after Starbucks scheduling practices were exposed in a national news report , the company committed to provide workers' schedules that were as consistent as their coffee. While the company did make progress, many problems remain.
In fact, a recent report surveying Starbucks workers across the country found that too many baristas still can't count on a fair paycheck — or a stable life — because they can't count on having a fair schedule.
It's time for Starbucks to fulfill its commitments, live up to its reputation as one of the best employers around, and ensure that every Starbucks worker has a schedule that lets them plan their lives and care for their families.
What Starbucks baristas have to say:
“Our schedule was supposed to be out Monday, but it wasn't out until Wednesday. That’s one week. But we have to request vacation time 3 weeks in advance. I’m a shift supervisor, but my baristas are getting shafted.” —3.5 year Starbucks employee, Seattle
"It's really hard to plan without having the schedule more than 5 days in advance. I just think that consistency is key, and it seems like its hard to have consistent hours here. Its frustrating when you do get hours but then you're sent home to cut labor or because it's slow. There's no way to plan your life. I don't think that work should be a hindrance.” —5-year Starbucks employee
“As a shift supervisor I know better than to try and call out of my shift, no matter how sick I am. It is common knowledge that you are responsible for finding your own coverage, and it's also common knowledge that you won't find any. One day I was so sick I spread out some cardboard on the floor so I could at least lay down and my baristas called me when they needed me.” —3-year Starbucks employee
More information:
- The Grind: Striving for Scheduling Fairness at Starbucks details scheduling issues at Starbucks stores across the country
- Starbucks workers in Georgia have been speaking out about similar concerns
- While Starbucks has encouraged managers to "go the extra mile" on scheduling — and many have — workers want new policies, not just good intentions.
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Contact: Sage Wilson, Working Washington: sage@workingwa.org