Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Thursday marked a day of solidarity for Starbucks Workers United across the country, as the union claims Starbucks continues to try and block efforts by employees to unionize.
Leaflets were distributed at four Buffalo area Starbucks on Thursday, including at the Delaware and Chippewa location in Downtown Buffalo.
"Starbucks continues to terrorize workers, including at stores like the Delaware and Chippewa store, which had originally won their you need election 18-to-1," said Casey Moore of Starbucks Workers United in a conversation with WBEN. "Now almost all of the union leaders of the store had been pushed out of the company. The manager there continues to cut hours, scare people, and try to push decertification petitions. A number of the same things that they've been doing now for the past two years in Buffalo."
Moore adds there's still renewed energy with new workers joining the movement every day, but admits it's an uphill battle.
This day of solidarity for Starbucks Workers United ties in with another notable union making headlines with their efforts for a new contract.
"Buffalo is a union town. We have the Ford factory and the GM folks potentially going on strike. So we talk to a lot of fellow union members who have a lot of solidarity with us, and we have a lot of solidarity with them," said Moore.
News broke on Wednesday that Starbucks founder Howard Schultz stepped down from the Board of Directors with the company. Moore says it was Schultz that was really leading the union-busting campaigns.
"He took the union campaign as a personal attack against his leadership, which of course it wasn't," she said. "We're hoping that provides some opportunity maybe for Starbucks to change course."
More of our conversation with Moore is available in the player below: