Providence Starbucks Workers File for Union Election

Providence Starbucks Workers File for Union Election

Starbucks workers at the One Financial store in Providence filed a petition on Monday with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to unionize with Starbucks Workers United. 

In a letter to Starbucks CEO Laxman Narasimhan to announce their organizing campaign, workers wrote, “We’re struggling to make ends meet while the company tells us there are not enough hours to be given. We refuse to be overworked and lied to. We know the company boasts record-breaking numbers each quarter."

"We exhaust ourselves working outside of our availability, and endlessly scrounging for extra shifts to make ends meet; which negatively impacts our health, both physically and mentally. We deserve living wages with consistent hours and the benefits to support ourselves and families while working here without having to fear that we’ll lose those benefits every time management unilaterally cuts hours," they continue. 

GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST

In their release, the group wrote it is "the first store in the city and state to file for a union election."

Warwick Starbucks workers in Rhode Island however filed a petition to unionize in 2022 but were unsuccessful.

The One Financial employees -- who call themselves "partners" -- say they are "joining a nationwide movement of over 9,000 baristas organizing for better working conditions, fair wages, and consistent schedules."

Since December 2021, Starbucks Workers United says that it has led over 360 Starbucks stores in 41 states and the District of Columbia to be unionized — "more than any company in the 21st century."