A unionization campaign is underway at another Upstate Starbucks store. Employees of the Clemson Starbucks at Tiger Boulevard and College Avenue filed a petition Monday, with the National Labor Relations Board to schedule an election.
They would be represented by Starbucks Workers United, the national organization, if that's how the voting turns out. A letter from eleven of the employees complains of unreasonable work schedules due to understaffing as well as what the letter terms "racial and medical discrimination."
Employees have voted to unionize at Starbucks in Greenville, Anderson and Columbia among more than 440 locations around the country, a small proportion of the nearly sixteen-thousand Starbucks nationwide. I'm, etc.
In response to the petition, Starbucks emphasized the benefits it provides to its hourly partners, including comprehensive medical, dental and vision coverage, equity ownership and increased paid time off accrual rates. “We recognize that a subset of partners feel differently, and we respect their right to organize and to engage in lawful union activities without fear of reprisal or retaliation,” a Starbucks spokesperson said in a statement to The Post and Courier.
"As a next step, we welcome the opportunity for partners at our Tiger Boulevard and College Ave. store to vote in a neutral, secret ballot election conducted by the NLRB — which allows all partners to make their own informed decision regarding union representation.”
Hourly employees at Starbucks make an average wage of $17.50 an hour with a national minimum of $15 an hour, according to the company.