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Fourteen Baltimore baristas made history on Monday, when they gathered in a downtown Baltimore hotel and voted to join a union. The vote made their Starbucks 鈥� at 1209 North Charles Street 鈥� the first in Maryland to unionize.
The vote, to join Workers United, was 14-0.
A former U.S. labor secretary who was on hand for the vote 鈥� gubernatorial hopeful Tom Perez (D) 鈥� predicted that the small but growing push to unionize Starbucks employees will soon include hundreds of stores.
鈥淭his is not a one-off moment,鈥� said Perez. 鈥淭he number of union organizing campaigns we saw, the number of strikes we saw last year, the collective action that workers are taking across this country鈥� I applaud that.鈥�
In a statement, the Seattle-based retailer said it respected the vote, but it said company operations would flow more smoothly without collective bargaining.
Employees of the Charles Street store said a deterioration in the chain鈥檚 treatment of its employees 鈥� whom it calls 鈥減artners鈥� 鈥� combined with the stresses of the pandemic led to the unionization vote.
鈥淚鈥檝e heard it from many longtime partners,鈥� said one worker, Jennifer Clawson. 鈥淭he conditions that Starbucks workers work in currently is very, very different from how it used to be five, ten years ago. It鈥檚 just incredibly stressful.鈥�
With a successful vote to form a bargaining unit behind them, workers will next elect leaders and begin formal negotiations with management over wages and working conditions.
Gubernatorial hopeful Tom Perez (right) talks with Starbucks employee Jennifer Clawson (left) and union organizer Stephanie Hernandez (second from left) after Monday鈥檚 vote. Perez campaign advisor Tucker Cavanagh is second from right. Photo by Bruce DePuyt.
Discussions about joining a union gathered steam earlier this year, Clawson said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a really big deal,鈥� she said of the vote. 鈥淓veryone at our store is so ecstatic.鈥�
In December, a Buffalo, New York, Starbucks made national headlines when it became the first location to fend off the iconic coffee retailer鈥檚 efforts to keep its stores union-free. Since then, more than two dozen have followed suit. A company spokesperson declined to give an exact number, referring a reporter instead to the National Labor Relations Board鈥檚 website.
Stephanie Hernandez, a Workers United organizer, pegged the current number at between 28 and 30, with more unionization efforts popping up daily across the country.
鈥淭hey have really have been wanting to do this for a while,鈥� she said of the 1209 North Charles Street workers. 鈥淭hey鈥檝e worked really, really hard.鈥�
The vote attracted several Democratic political candidates, including former congresswoman Donna F. Edwards, who has launched a bid to reclaim the 4th District seat she held for eight years.
A community organizer before entering politics, Edwards called the vote 鈥渋nspiring.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 really sweeping the country,鈥� she said. 鈥淭here is a total resurgence for labor.鈥�
Edwards said much of the labor movement鈥檚 new energy can be traced to the early days of the pandemic, when workers with the most physically demanding but low-paying jobs were deemed essential, while more high-paid workers were able to work from home.
Most of the Starbucks employees are younger people who didn鈥檛 grow up in union households. 鈥淚t is organic that they are seizing this moment to fight for themselves,鈥� Edwards said.
In a statement, a Starbucks spokesperson said: 鈥淲e are listening and learning from the partners in these stores as we always do across the country. From the beginning, we鈥檝e been clear in our belief that we are better together as partners, without a union between us, and that conviction has not changed.鈥�
鈥淲e respect our partner鈥檚 right to organize and are committed to following the NLRB process,鈥� the spokesperson said.
Perez, who served as state labor secretary for Gov. Martin O鈥橫alley and then ran the U.S. Department of Labor for President Obama, said the wave of unionization efforts around the country is helping turn back an anti-labor tide that began in the early days of the Reagan era.
鈥淩ather than fight these efforts and discipline people who鈥檝e been involved in union organizing, Starbucks ought to sit down with these workers and hear them out,鈥� Perez said. 鈥淚f they continue to fight these efforts, their customers are going to start voting with their feet. There are other places you can go get coffee.鈥�
