Last Updated on October 3, 2023, 8:27 AM | Published: October 3, 2023
OKLAHOMA CITY – A new union is brewing in the OKC metro. Starbucks (SBUX) workers in Midwest City have announced they are currently fighting for their right to unionize. This would be the fourth Starbucks to unionize in the OKC area if they are successful.
The workers of 29th and Air Depot in Midwest City, a store of approximately 20 workers, gave multiple reasons as to why they are seeking to collectively bargain with Starbucks.
Letter to SBUX CEO
According to a letter sent to SBUX CEO Laxman Narasimhan, “We have decided to unionize because we are tired of being treated as machines instead of human beings. Upper management continuously makes decisions without notifying or consulting partners.”
“District and Store managers lack knowledge of how their business operates and have pushed ‘do more with less’ to the point of impossibility. Any attempt to voice our concerns and frustrations is met swiftly with chastising and denial,” it continued.
“SBUX claims employees are called partners because ‘we are all partners in shared success’. However, SBUX exhibits hypocrisy by enacting policies and structures that prioritize profit over partners. Partners are demanded to provide high-quality products and speedy customer service while operating on skeleton crews that do not allow us to achieve these staples of the [SBUX] experience,” the letter read.
As to their thoughts on unionizing, the letter explained, “Unionization serves as the path to improving the treatment of partners. By joining other stores in the fight for unionization, we strive to build a future where [SBUX] stands true to its mission and values, a future where we truly are partners.”
Statement from Midwest City workers
Free Press also obtained a press statement released by Starbucks Workers United which included two Midwest City workers’ opinions on the matter.
“After dedicating three years of my life to this company, it’s disheartening to witness how our viewpoints and perspectives as partners are often overlooked in decisions that greatly impact both the business and partners,” said Viktoria Jekic, a barista of 3 years and organizer at the Midwest City location.
“The title ‘partner’ loses its meaning when we are treated as expendable commodities,” continued Jekic. “Unionizing signifies a future where our voices are not only acknowledged but truly valued and embraced, and where we are genuinely regarded as partners in the true sense of the word.”
Jekic wasn’t alone in voicing their concerns for their fellow workers in the press statement.
“As partners, we are those who are delivering on Starbucks’s most important values- values of community and inclusivity. However, we are seldom included in any decision, even those compromising cleanliness, staffing, or general ability to do business,” said Vinny Langworthy, a barista and trainer of 2 years. “Unionizing will ensure a future for partners where we are included, valued, and heard. Partners at 10754 value each other and the community we serve. Striving to do our best; we are simply moving for Starbucks to do the same.”
Free Press spoke with Jekic to clarify some details on what’s been going on at the 29th and Air Depot SBUX store.
Asked about the next step going forward for the possible union, she said, “The main next step for us is to get ourselves recognized and have word get out that our store is unionizing. We plan on doing a pin-up day tomorrow where everyone starts wearing their union pins and hopefully soon our shirts will be coming in.”
Problems at MWC store
What exactly is going on at the 29th and Air Depot store in Midwest City? Jekic said, “For me, I’ve been wanting to unionize for awhile. One of the big things that fueled me personally was when we weren’t allowed to decorate for pride last year, despite the fact that we had decorated every year prior.”
The lack of pride decorations was a hot-button issue earlier this year among SBUX workers.
“If I had to assume, one of the major impacts that pushed everyone else, it would have to do with how drastically our hours got cut. When people were affected by these sudden hour cuts with less than a day’s notice, the most management told us was we should just keep an eye out for any shifts that need to be covered,” she said.
Jekic continued, “The most ‘sympathetic’ they were is that they said it was only supposed to be for a short while. However, it lasted for longer, and they cut people’s hours even more.”
Some workers at 29th and Air Depot even had to get a second job to compensate for their loss in hours.
That’s not all they have to deal with.
The workers also have to deal with large amounts of traffic in cafe orders, mobile orders, delivery orders, and drive-thru orders. “When we started getting put on skeleton crews instead of turning off mobiles or deliveries to help lessen the traffic…they ignored our requests and said we couldn’t because it would affect our profit. We even had deals for deliveries and mobiles. When we expected to have a heavy volume of customers, instead of putting extra people on the floor to help handle the business, they shorten the staff on the floor,” she said.
SBUX has been one of the main drivers in the current labor movement to date.
They have over 9,000 baristas organizing, and about 230 union leaders fired in SBUX’s national union-busting campaign.
The NLRB under the Biden administration has issued over 100 official complaints against the company, with over 1,600 violations of labor law.
This continues a trend of labor organizing among Starbucks workers here in OKC and in the United States.
Alex Gatley covers labor activities in the state of Oklahoma.
