Starbucks Workers Seek Union Contract At Another Morris County Store

PARSIPPANY, NJ — Employees at a Starbucks in Parsippany are seeking to form a union, while calling for fair compensation, job security, and more of a voice in company decisions.

More than 440 other Starbucks coffee shops and 10,500 workers across the United States have voted to unionize, according to Starbucks Workers United, which is affiliated with many of the union stores.

The Troy Hills Starbucks at 1429 Route 46 was among 18 stores that sent a letter to Starbucks CEO Laxman Narasimhan last week. There are currently 27 employees at this store, said a spokesperson from Starbucks Workers United.

"Though we work at different stores, we are united through our shared experiences and in our demand for higher wages, fair and consistent scheduling, improved benefits, and a safe and dignified workplace," the letter said.

"As the face of Starbucks, we are dedicated to providing exceptional service to our customers, but we also deserve fair compensation, job security, and a voice in decisions that affect us."

Three stores in New York City and one in the Philadelphia area were included on the latest list of stores that are beginning to organize, along with the store at 1429 Route 46.

"Our decision to unionize is not made lightly," employees said in their letter to Narasimhan. "We believe that a union will not only benefit us as workers but will also strengthen Starbucks as a company by fostering a more collaborative and productive work environment. We hope that Starbucks will respect our right to organize and engage in constructive dialogue with us as we move forward with the unionization process."

There is only one Starbucks store in Morris County where employees have voted to unionize, on Route 10 in Ledgewood. Other locations in Hopewell, Hamilton, Summit, and Montclair have also done so; an effort in Cherry Hill was rejected, according to a database on the website Perfect Union.

The movement began in Buffalo, N.Y., where workers at two stores voted to unionize in late 2021, despite efforts by Starbucks to dissuade them from doing so. Unionized Starbucks employees and federal labor regulators have repeatedly accused the corporation of illegal union-busting.

Starbucks said in February that the company is working on a framework with Workers United to handle contract negotiations at unionized locations. This came after both the coffee chain and the union sued one another last October, in a standoff sparked by a social media post over the Israel-Hamas war.

In April, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in a separate case, stemming from the 2022 firing of seven employees from a Starbucks in Memphis that sought to organize. The National Labor Relations Board filed for and received a temporary injunction against the company for unfair labor practices under Section 10(j) of the National Labor Relations Act, which the company challenged.

Starbucks claimed the NLRB did not show enough proof and asked that federal courts apply the same standard for these injunctions as they do for ones from other agencies.

"Consistent federal standards are not only important for employers, but also employees, ensuring each individual knows their rights and consistent labor practices are upheld no matter where in the country they work and live," Starbucks said.