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starbucks

Starbucks Workers Continue To Fight For Union Contracts One Year After New CEO Took Office 

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Brian Niccol became the CEO of Starbucks one year ago. When he took the job, he promised to make changes for the workers and their fight for unionization. However, the union and Niccol are still at odds, according to the workers, and what’s been` referred to as one of the most successful corporate union drives in recent history, has been stalling. 

“I deeply respect the right of partners to choose, through a fair and democratic process, to be represented by a union,” Niccol wrote in a letter to the union last September.

 “If our partners choose to be represented, I am committed to making sure we engage constructively and in good faith with the union and the partners it represents.”

Since December 2021, more than 12,000 workers at around 650 Starbucks locations around the US have unionized, making it the fastest-growing union campaign in modern history. This growth has also come amongst hundreds of allegations of union-busting, retaliation, and unfair labor practices thrown at Starbucks from the union, according to reports. 

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Starbucks Workers United has made progress securing the first union contract with the company since bargaining sessions began in the beginning of 2024, however, the progress has since stalled since Niccol took over the company, the Guardian writes. 

One of the first strategies Niccol implemented was titled “Back to Starbucks,” which involved an emphasis on customer service to decrease wait times for orders. Workers organizing at Starbucks criticized this strategy as it increased demands on them without any improvements to staffing or pay. 

Starbucks Workers United and the Strategic Organizing Center of 737 Starbucks workers conducted a survey that found 91% of workers reported understaffing in their stores within the past three months, and 93% stated the policy changes made under Niccol either had no impact or actually worsened the customer experience. 

“It’s clear that ‘Back to Starbucks’ isn’t working and won’t succeed until we finalize a fair union contract with the hours, take-home pay and protections baristas need to do our jobs,” said Michelle Eisen, a spokesperson for Starbucks Workers United and a barista for 15 years.

“Brian has talked about simplifying the menu to make things easier for partners, and wanting to get customers in and out of the stores faster, but these changes that he’s rolled out haven’t accomplished any of those things,” said Jasmine Leli, a Starbucks barista since December 2021.

“We really need Niccol to get back to the table to finalize this contract so that we can start to turn things around.”

Leli also said that Starbucks should expect further action from unionized workers, as the location she works at in Cheektowaga, New York was the second store to unionize. 

“We are going to do whatever it takes to get them back to the table so that we can start to address the issues with the wages, scheduling and staffing,” she added. 

“We are the ones that are working in the stores and interacting with the customers day in and day out, and partners want to be a part of making change in the workplace. So that’s why stores are joining the fight.”

Niccol’s salary has also been a huge point in the fight for unionization. In 2024, he made $97.8 million, which is 6,666 times more than the average annual salary of a Starbucks worker; $14,674. This marks the largest CEO-to-worker pay gap among the top 500 corporations in the US. 

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Senator Bernie Sanders wrote on social media back in March regarding Starbucks: 

“If you’re the Starbucks CEO you get $96m for four months of work including a $5m bonus. If you’re a Starbucks union worker, the CEO is refusing to give you a decent raise to pay rent and buy groceries. Starbucks must end its greed & negotiate a fair union contract.”

In response to the criticism of Niccol’s salary, a Starbucks spokesperson said the following: “Starbucks believes Brian has established himself as one of the most effective leaders in our industry, with a proven track record of delivering long-term value to employees, customers and shareholders. The majority of his reported first-year compensation reflects multi-year replacement equity grants, awarded to offset compensation forfeited upon his departure from Chipotle, which are now directly tied to Starbucks future performance.”

“It would take less than what Brian made in four months to settle fair contracts with our union,” the union said in a recent video posted online. 

In December 2024, thousands of baristas went on strike around the US in what became the largest strike in the company’s history. In April 2025, the union rejected a proposal from Starbucks for 2% pay increases with 81% of unionized stores rejecting the offer for not addressing their other economic benefits and pay increases. 

Since September 2024, Starbucks Workers United grew to 648 unionized stores from 500. 

“I believe if the company truly wanted to fix the problems happening in their stores, it could have happened by now,” said Diego Franco, a barista at Starbucks for five years at a unionized store in Chicago, Illinois.

“Where the company might see a bottom line, I see human experiences, human lives that are affected by the work that we do. So I hope to preserve that and to make it better, not just for me and my co-workers, but for people who come in the stores.”

“Since last April 2024, Starbucks and Workers United have held more than nine bargaining sessions over 20 days and three mediation sessions over five days with a federal mediator,” a spokesperson for Starbucks said.

“We’ve reached over thirty meaningful agreements on hundreds of topics Workers United delegates told us were important to them. We are ready to finalize a reasonable contract for represented partners, but we need the union to return to the bargaining table to finish the job.”

wnba

WNBA All-Stars Make ‘Pay Us What You Owe Us’ Statement During Warmup 

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The WNBA All-Stars sent a message this Saturday during warmup rounds before the game. All of the players on Team Clark and Team Collier wore shirts that said “Pay us what you owe us.”

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“We get a very tiny percentage of all the money that’s made through the WNBA, which obviously is made through the entertainment we provide. So we want a fair and reasonable percentage of that,” said Napheesa Collier.

The decision was also made after the players and the league failed to reach a deal on a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA). The WNBA’s fortune is tied up with the NBA, and while the relationship between both has grown over the years, there are many WNBA teams with no direct ties to the NBA. 

The league’s players opted out of their last CBA in October as they are looking for a better revenue-sharing model, increased salaries, improved benefits, and a softer salary cap, according to reports. 

After the last failed negotiations, many of the players stated that there was a large discrepancy between what they wanted and what was being offered to them from the league. Some players, including All-Stars Napheesa Collier and Angel Reese, have discussed a potential walkout if a new CBA is not reached by October. 

While the WNBA players aren’t suggesting that they should be paid the same as their NBA counterparts, they understand the high revenue they bring in. A WNBA rookie minimum is $66,000 compared to $1.27 million in the NBA. 

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Fans and supporters alike supported the players’ wishes at the end of the game with chants of “pay them!” and some even held up signs that read “pat the players” throughout the game. 

“We had no idea that they were in solidarity with our demonstration,” said Nneka Ogwumike, president of the WNBPA.

 “I’ve been hearing it all weekend at the fan events, supporting us and wanting us to get our fair share of the value.”

The players also recognized that this All-Stars game was potentially the last time that so many of them would be together in one place before the season ends, so they had to take advantage of the opportunity to get their message across. 

“This is a perfect opportunity to raise awareness for what we’re doing and do it together,” Collier stated.

The players have yet to decide if they’ll wear the shirts on their own teams throughout the second half of the season which begins this week. 

“You put it out there, and you stand on business, and we’re standing on business,” said Courtney Williams.

barns and noble

Barnes & Noble Workers Organizing Union Drive For The Largest Bookstore Chain In The US 

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Workers at Barnes & Noble, the largest bookstore chain in the US, are preparing for a nationwide union drive after six outlet stores voted to organize throughout the past year, according to reports. 

According to the workers, who are demanding better pay and working conditions, “many more” stores will move to unionize.

Locations that already have unionized have made multiple claims that management has delayed attempting contract negotiations, and James Daunt, the CEO, allegedly went on a months-long campaign to encourage employees not to vote in favor of organizing. 

“He would come in and essentially try to talk us out of unionizing. The big argument against us unionizing was it would make his life harder, which he would repeat several times. It wasn’t very successful,” said Jessica Sepple, a worker at Barnes & Noble’s flagship New York City store in Union Square.

Daunt disputed the claims of negotiating delays, and stated he agreed with the workers on “the fundamentals” of their demands while warning of “potential upsides and downsides to a union.”

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The store voted 76-2 in favor of unionizing last summer. Barnes & Noble has around 600 stores across the US. The business itself has been on a decline in recent years, and Daunt, who became CEO in 2019, has said he’s worked hard to turn around the business. 

Sepple said that their “purpose for unionizing is to get some recognition for the dignity of workers, and having sat at the table and currently in negotiations with Barnes & Noble, it is disappointing that Barnes & Noble has not treated this as if that dignity is deserved.”

Sepple also discussed that workers at the Union Square location have experienced lagging wages, safety concerns with ladders and general book storage, aggressive customers, and being given duties that the job initially did not entail, according to The Guardian. 

“If you’re good at your job, you’re just going to get more work. It takes a lot of knowledge, research, and a love of reading and books to make it happen, and oftentimes I’ve found the company tends to coast on that.”

In Brooklyn’s Park Slope, workers won a union election in July 2023. Sydul Akhanji, a worker at the store for two years, said he wants to work for the bookstore chain for a long time, but the low pay has been a major downside. He stated “if the company wants to build itself around knowledgeable booksellers, its workers need to be able to afford rent and food.”

Akhanji also alleged that Daunt attempted to deter the workers at Park Slope from unionizing. He claimed that the CEO “just went on and on about how it’d be hard and make all his plans complicated, if we unionized, and how he has a vision for us, so please, just don’t unionize right now.”

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Workers have also claimed that all contract negotiations are slowed down because executives are sending them to their company lawyers, who are typically not present during the discussions and negotiations. In some of the New York stores, management has been negotiating separately from the workers as well. 

“We live in the most expensive city in the country, and our starting wage until very recently was minimum wage, and it’s just not sustainable,” Esther Rosenfield, a barista at the Barnes & Noble in Manhattan, said.

Barnes & Noble workers in Bloomington, Illinois heard about the union voting in New York and decided to hold their own. In November, they unanimously voted to unionize. 

“James Daunt did a conference call to the store himself saying a vote for the union is a vote against him. The issues we’re facing are companywide. We’re all facing the same issues. If one small store in the midwest can unionize, then anyone can,” said senior bookseller, Zane Crockett.

Daunt stated: 

“My argument to the booksellers has been very simple: we have no disagreement with the fundamentals of what is being asked for, and indeed have pivoted the company precisely to achieve them. Only a successful business, after all, can deliver the investments necessary to improve pay and the physical condition of our stores.”

“In this endeavor, I see both potential upsides and downsides to the addition of a union. The most obvious potential upside is to have a clearer articulation of bookseller aspirations. Equally, there are potential downsides, notably if it causes unnecessary confrontation between ‘management’ and ‘workers’ and the fact that low-paid booksellers will have to pay significant dues to the union, all other things being equal reducing their pay.”

laid off

Bandcamp Lays Off Half Of Its Staff After Being Bought By Songtradr

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The online music platform that is known for championing independent artists and labels, Bandcamp, has laid off half of its staff after the company was bought out by Songtradr, a music licensing startup. 

Songtradr wrote a statement confirming the purchase of Bandcamp from Epic Games last month: 

“This acquisition will help Bandcamp continue to grow within a music-first company and enable Songtradr to expand its capabilities to support the artist community.”

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Songtradr also announced the layoffs with the purchase of Bandcamp: “Over the past few years the operating costs of Bandcamp have significantly increased … After a comprehensive evaluation, including the importance of roles for smooth business operations and pre-existing functions at Songtradr, 50% of Bandcamp employees have accepted offers to join Songtradr.”

What this means is the remaining 50% of employees will not have their contracts renewed. 

Bandcamp was founded in 2007, and has been known as an online music store and community made up of more than five million artists and labels. The platform was acquired by Epic Games in March of last year. 

Bandcamp is also known for its support of underground unknown musicians, giving them a chance to reach more listeners and build a support network. Their editorial platform, Bandcamp Daily, also promotes music from “outside the mainstream.” In the entirety of the company’s lifespan, customers have spent $1.2 billion with an average of 82% of revenue going to artists and/or labels. 

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Bandcamp United, the company’s union, shared a statement online regarding the “heartbreaking” layoffs. 

“We love our jobs, the platform we’ve built, and the Bandcamp community. We’re glad we have our union – co-workers who have each other’s backs. We’ll be moving together to decide what our next steps are. On Wednesday we return to the bargaining table with Epic Games, and we’ll keep you updated.”

The union has also been trying to gain recognition from Songtradr. This month they also posted an online petition so they could begin negotiations with the new buyers to offer jobs to existing staff members. Two weeks before, Songtradr told the union they would not be extending job offers to all of Bandcamp’s staff. 

Songtradr was originally founded in 2014, and is a platform known for allowing musicians and publishers to upload music that can then be licensed by commercial spaces like brands and content creators. 

On the day that Songtradr purchased Bandcamp, Epic Games also announced they were laying off 16% of their global staff (around 830 individuals).

Teamsters President Gearing Up For Potential UPS Strike

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Sean O’Brien, the president of the Teamsters Union, is gearing up for what could be the biggest, and costliest, strike from a single private employer in US history for UPS; the single largest employer within the Teamsters Union.

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girl

Visual Effects Artists Speak Out Against Marvel Mistreatment 

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Media outlets have reported first-hand accounts of individuals who have worked for Marvel’s visual effects department, stating that the company constantly had high demands and would overwork employees for little money to create the movie magic we’re all used to when we turn on a Marvel film. 

Dhruv Govil, a visual effects artist who worked on a handful of Marvel films, tweeted: “Working on Marvel shows is what pushed me to leave the VFX industry. They’re a horrible client, and I’ve seen way too many colleagues break down after being overworked while Marvel tightens the purse strings.”  

“The issue is Marvel is too big, and can demand whatever they want. It’s a toxic relationship.” 

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An anonymous visual effects artist told New York Magazine’s Vulture site:  “When I worked on one movie, it was almost six months of overtime every day. I was working seven days a week, averaging 64 hours a week on a good week. Marvel genuinely works its workers really hard. I’ve had co-workers sit next to me, break down and start crying. I’ve had people having anxiety attacks on the phone.”

Joe Pavlo, an Emmy award-winning visual effects artist who worked on Guardians Of The Galaxy stated that working for the company was a “crazy mess.” 

“The visual effects industry is filled with terrific people with lots of goodwill who really care but, at the end of the day, there’s nothing in place when their backs are up against the wall and Disney is making crazy demands,” Pavlo told The Guardian. 

“All the goodwill in the world just evaporates when everything gets changed and they decide they’re replacing that character with a different actor or changing the entire environment – they’re now in a pizza restaurant instead of a cornfield. It can be that extreme at the very last minute,” Pavlo continued. 

“It can be characterized as bullying but filtered through multiple layers of management and supervisor and hierarchy. It’s not like the executive from Disney is grabbing someone and swearing at them or something like that. It’s more like an atmosphere where everybody feels like this is the most desperately important thing and, if we don’t do it, we’re all f*cked.”

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“The average artist doesn’t even have any contact with the clients. It’s really just the people at the producer and the supervisor level and then they pass it on to their crew. So you could say, oh, the supervisor’s a real bully, but actually it’s a knock-on effect and then the people who are the team leaders, once they can’t handle it, end up being bullies,” Pavlo exclaimed. 

“Bullying is a huge problem in our industry because everybody’s so desperate sometimes. It seems like there’s such a high level of stress and pressure on these jobs to complete on time, to change everything at the drop of a hat.”

Pavlo is also the chair of the animation and visual effects branch for Broadcasting, Entertainment, Communications and Theater Union (BECTU). 

“Disney-Marvel is very famous for wanting multiple versions running parallel so that they can decide what they want. A strong union would be able to reel that in a bit.

“If you imagine you get the art department to design a set, you wouldn’t get them to tear down the set and rebuild a completely different set 35 times. Because it’s digital, people don’t see it as the same thing but it is: it involves work and creativity and long hours. It doesn’t create itself,” Pavlo explained, adding that the recent union organizing efforts from Amazon and Starbucks workers have offered a “possible blueprint” for how VFX artists can follow suit. 

“Disney is going to have to utilize their visual effects teams more and they need to be compensated for their contribution and working conditions. Ultimately they’re going to get to that point but it takes one person like that article from Vulture to say, hey, it’s time for somebody to step in and protect this side of it, as have all of the other departments been protected as well.”

Blizzard Workers Create First Union At A Big U.S. Video Game Company

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19 quality assurance workers at Raven Software, a division of American video game publisher Activision Blizzard, have successfully voted to unionize, marking the first labor union at a major U.S. video game company. Backed by the Communications Workers of America (CWA), three of the 21 total workers voted against the union.

Much of Raven Software’s work primarily comes on the numerous chapters of the renowned first-person shooter franchise “Call of Duty,” which includes “Black Ops Cold War,” “Warzone,” “Black Ops 2,” “Modern Warfare 3,” and “WWII.” Over the course of its history, “Call of Duty” has made more than $17 billion.

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The workers previously announced their intent to unionize back in December, which came days after Microsoft announced the purchasing of Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion, one of the largest acquisitions in tech history. The workers had been on strike protesting the layoff of 12 contractors.

Speaking to TechCrunch at the time, Raven Software quality assurance tester Onah Rongstad stated the layoffs came after a five-week stretch of “overtime, consistent work.” That period of work, referred to in the industry as a “crunch,” can cause burnout and stress.

With the creation of the union — now known as the Game Workers Alliance — workers can now bargain with their employer to circumvent those crunches of unexpected layoffs. While Activision Blizzard spokesperson Jessica Taylor told The Verge the company respected the employees’ right to unionize, her choice words showed Blizzard has undeniable issues with the procedure.

“We respect and believe in the right of all employees to decide whether or not to support or vote for a union. We believe that an important decision that will impact the entire Raven Software studio of roughly 350 people should not be made by 19 Raven employees.”

Meanwhile, the Game Workers Alliance stated it hopes the unionization will serve as an inspiration to the growing movement of video game workers to “create better games and build workplaces that reflect our values and empower all of us.”

Along from “Call of Duty,” Activision Blizzard’s collection of premiere video game franchises include Diablo, Crash Bandicoot, Overwatch, and World of Warcraft, which possesses around 4.8 million users. Of course, the long-running and well-established properties fail to hide Activision Blizzard’s less-than-stellar history of employee treatment.

In July of 2021, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) filed suit against the company for 10 violations of state employment law. According to the DFEH, Activision Blizzard “discriminated against female employees in terms and conditions of employment, including compensation, assignment, promotion, termination, constructive discharge, and retaliation.”

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The DFEH also found that Activision Blizzard’s female employees were subjected to sexual harassment, while the company’s leadership failed to take action against or prevent the unlawful discrimination and harassment.

According to the lawsuit, among the harassment female World of Warcraft workers were forced to endure included unwanted advances from fellow male workers, derogatory comments about rape, and overall demeaning behavior.

Since that time, Activision Blizzard has attempted to polish its reputation and work environment by hiring 1,000 game testers as full-time employees — increasing the company’s workforce by 25% — along with boosting the minimum salary of those workers to $20 an hour.

Amazon

Historic Union Vote For New York Amazon Workers Is Just The Beginning

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In a recent interview, The Teamsters’ new president said that organizing Amazon is “vital,” as the company has “total disrespect” for its workers and their efforts to unionize to better protect their rights as employees. 

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Major Hollywood Union Votes To Ratify Contracts For Better Streaming Payments

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The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE), a major Hollywood union, have ratified their new film and TV contracts this week after six months of contentious negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP). LA locals rejected the deal in a popular vote. 

“From start to finish, from preparation to ratification, this has been a democratic process to win the very best contracts,” said IATSE International President Matthew Loeb in a statement today. 

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“The vigorous debate, high turnout, and close election, indicates we have an unprecedented movement-building opportunity to educate members on our collective bargaining process and drive more participation in our union long-term.”

AMPTP released a statement as well, stating: “We congratulate IATSE President, Matt Loeb, the IATSE Bargaining Committee and Board for their leadership in achieving ratification of the new contracts. Throughout the negotiations, IATSE leadership advocated changes to improve quality of life for those they represent. These agreements meaningfully reflect the industry’s endorsement of those priorities and keep everyone working.”

The union uses an electoral college system for ratification votes such as this one. During this particular vote, 359 (56%) voted in favor compared to 282 (44%) who voted against it out of 641 total delegate votes; the votes were taken from 36 local unions nationwide that were eligible.

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The Basic Agreement was rejected in the popular vote with 49.6% voting yes to 50.4% voting no. Overall 50.3% voted yes to 49.7% voting no for both contracts. In the end, “72% of the 63,209 eligible members cast digital ballots this weekend,” according to IATSE.

According to media reports, “there were actually two separate contracts that were ratified: the Basic Agreement, which covers 13 Hollywood locals, and the Area Standards Agreement, which covers 23 locals outside of Los Angeles.”

“For the LA centric Basic Agreement, the vote was 256 voting for the deal that IATSE made with the AMPTP last month, yes to 188 no. In regards to the non-LA based Area Standards Agreement the yes vote was 103 to 94 no votes for the more recent deal,” according to Deadline. 

“Our goal was to achieve fair contracts that work for IATSE members in television and film—that address quality-of-life issues and conditions on the job like rest and meal breaks. We met our objectives for this round of bargaining and built a strong foundation for future agreements,” Loeb stated. 

Amazon Using ‘Fake’ Twitter Accounts To Defend Working Conditions 

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Amazon has received a slew of criticism within the past year of the pandemic due to the harsh working conditions their warehouse/lower level employees have had to endure at the sake of their own health and safety. Now, a surge of “fake” Twitter accounts have emerged to defend the corporation and push back on criticisms presented during the pandemic. 

Many of the accounts are meant to be Amazon warehouse employees who love working for the company and believe Unions aren’t actually helpful. A majority of the account handles begin with “AmazonFC” followed by the first name of the “employee” and warehouse designation. The accounts often only tweet about Amazon in response to criticism and refute any tweets claiming the company enforces “robotic” working conditions that lead to “high injury rates.” 

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One account, which has since been suspended, tweeted: “Unions are good for some companies, but I don’t want to have to shell out hundreds a month just for lawyers!”

This is not the first time Amazon has used social media to try to combat criticism. Many Amazon employee accounts from 2018 and 2019 have since been deleted due to exposure. Amazon did confirm, however, that the latest tweets being spread online were fake. 

“Many of these are not Amazon FC Ambassadors – it appears they are fake accounts that violate Twitter’s terms. We’ve asked Twitter to investigate and take appropriate action.” 

The spokesperson for Amazon who released the statement above refused to acknowledge how many Twitter accounts were run by real Amazon ambassadors and how the company regulates fake accounts. Bellingcat is an investigative journalism site that compiled a list of at least 56 Amazon Ambassador Twitter accounts. 

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Some of the accounts only recently became active and were almost immediately suspended by Twitter. Some Twitter users have even created their own parody accounts to make fun of the corporation’s attempt at combating criticism. 

Recently, Amazon CEO Dave Clark and the official Amazon News Twitter account criticized Senator Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and Congressman Mark Pocan over certain policies. Those tweets backfired for Amazon after it was revealed that Amazon engineers flagged the tweets because they were concerned that they were “unnecessarily antagonistic which would risk Amazon’s brand reputation.” 

Other leaked memos that initially sparked these fake Twitter accounts cited complaints from Amazon managers over delivery truck drivers leaving bottles of their urine and bags of their feces in trucks, despite the fact that Amazon’s PR account claimed all reports of workers needing to urinate in bottles to keep up with their workload was false. 

The National Labor Relations Board is also currently determining “whether to consolidate multiple complaints from workers over the past year alleging interference from Amazon against workers’ attempts to organize or form a union,” according to the Guardian.