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Last Wednesday, Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol gave a VIP talk at UT Austin’s McCombs School of Business. Austin baristas showed up too.
Through heat AND rain, union baristas and allies picketed outside, marched to
Rowling Hall, and chanted “No Contract, No Coffee!” loud enough that it disrupted his event. And students INSIDE the event brought things to a halt calling on everyone to boycott Starbucks and demand Niccol finish a contract with baristas.
“We demand that CEO Brian Niccol come to the table to negotiate a fair contract,” said Trey Runyan, an Austin barista and Starbucks Workers United member. “We’re going to keep organizing.”
Here’s what Brian didn’t want to talk about on stage:
He makes 1,700x what the average barista makes
Starbucks pay starts at $16/hr or less in 43 states, including Texas
Baristas are relying on SNAP and Medicaid to get by
Starbucks has racked up hundreds of labor law violations as determined by NLRB judges, the most of any company in modern U.S. history. The Union filed more than 1,100 unfair labor practice charges.
Brian ducked his own baristas, and Texas AFL-CIO President Leonard Aguilar noticed. “He didn’t have the courage to face his own employees.”
Texas now has 30+ union stores of the 700+ nationwide. And baristas will keep showing up until Starbucks signs a contract with fair pay, enough hours, real staffing, and the protections they’ve been fighting for.
Follow us on social to stay in the fight and see where baristas show up next.
Solidarity forever,
Starbucks Workers United
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