Question the Starbucks boss about union abuse

Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz must explain to members of the US Parliament about the company’s dealings with union members. The American chain is accused of thwarting the formation of unions in its branches, which is prohibited by law. Schultz pledged to answer questions from a group of senators on the issue on March 29.

Schultz did not respond to previous requests from independent Sen. Bernie Sanders for clarification. When a habeas corpus threatened to allow the Starbucks boss to travel to Washington, he changed course.

The reason is complaints about Starbucks received by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), a government agency that checks whether employees are free to unionize to defend their rights. According to the NLRB, Starbucks was guilty of threatening employees who wanted to regulate in the United States, among other things. The coffee chain is also said to have fired about fifty union advocates and closed branches where employees voted to form a union. In some cases, judges have intervened and Starbucks has had to rehire fired employees.

In the United States, the impact of a union is not dependent on whether a few employees are members, but is organized by company or location. If you want a syndicate in your location, you must have enough supporters for it. The NLRB monitors this and can declare power to elect union officials if the employer refuses to do so.

Employees at more than 280 Starbucks locations have voted to unionize, according to Senator Sanders. But the company was not going to sign a new agreement on their terms of employment with any union. Starbucks has repeatedly denied allegations of union busting. These allegations are said to be “totally untrue”.