Tensions escalate! Starbucks Corporation (SBUX.US) Union files 34 federal complaints.

The Starbucks Corporation (SBUX.US) union submitted 34 complaints to the US Labor Commission this week, indicating that tensions between Starbucks Corporation and the union are escalating. These complaints were submitted by the Starbucks Workers United to the US Labor Commission, accusing Starbucks Corporation of violating federal labor laws in stores in 16 states and selecting and dismissing employees in the past few months due to union activities. It is reported that the union filed a complaint with the US Labor Commission on December 20 last year, stating that Starbucks Corporation refused to negotiate fairly and held a five-day strike at hundreds of Starbucks Corporation stores before Christmas. Starbucks Corporation denied these accusations. Starbucks Corporation spokesperson Phil Gee said in an email statement, "Taking the time to make these complaints is a strategy that distracts us from the progress we could have made." The complaints and strikes that Starbucks Corporation is currently facing are similar to labor disputes the company faced in 2022 and 2023. At that time, prominent US lawmakers, government enforcers, institutional investors, and employees expressed concerns about the company's response to union activities and the lack of progress in collective bargaining negotiations. In February last year, when the union and Starbucks Corporation announced they had agreed to work together to resolve their differences, these disputes began to subside. Both sides subsequently reported substantial progress in a series of multi-day negotiations on the terms of the union contract, until negotiations broke down over wage issues at the end of 2024. The union stated that Starbucks Corporation would not immediately raise wages, with only a 1.5% annual increase in the future. Starbucks Corporation, on the other hand, said the union proposed unsustainable demands and prematurely ended the negotiations. Former chair of the National Labor Relations Board, Wilma Liebman, stated that the new documents from the labor relations board indicate that Starbucks Corporation's relationship with the union is once again heading in the wrong direction. She had been one of the union allies urging to join the Starbucks Corporation board before the agreement reached in February last year. She suggested that bringing in an outside mediator would benefit both sides. Wilma Liebman said, "It would be crazy not to find some way to get it back on track and finalize a deal, rather than let this situation deteriorate. They have made great strides. What they need is some added charm and some added skills to help them overcome obstacles and close the deal."