Schuylkill Yards Starbucks is the latest to unionize in Philadelphia
Several other Philadelphia Starbucks locations are unionized and joined in a recent unfair labor practice strike.
Another Starbucks has unionized in Philadelphia, after a vote at the Schuylkill Yards location last week.
“I see a need for improvements and am optimistic that this win will make great change,” shift supervisor Asia Wright-Wilson said in a union statement. “When problems are not well addressed through the traditional Starbucks channels the greatest strength lies in the collective action of our coworkers.”
The Schuylkill Yards location has 18 union-eligible workers. All participated in the election, with 10 voting to join, according to the union.
The first group of Starbucks workers to unionize did so in 2021 at a Buffalo, N.Y., store. Workers across the country have since joined the Starbucks Workers United union, which has been negotiating a first contract.
“We respect our partners’ right to choose, through a fair and democratic process, to be represented by a union or not to be represented by a union,” said Starbucks spokesperson, Jaci Anderson, via email on Monday. “Any agreement needs to reflect the reality that Starbucks already offers the best job in retail.”
Anderson said Starbucks’ hourly employees’ pay and benefits equate to over $30 an hour on average.
Starbucks has several dozen stores in Philadelphia and more in the surrounding counties. Several city and suburb locations are unionized, including nearby West Philadelphia locations at Penn Medicine, 39th and Walnut Streets, and 34th and Walnut Streets.
The union has reached multiple tentative agreements as they negotiate a contract, but pay has been a sticking point. Workers also want more staffing, and resolution to hundreds of unfair labor practice charges against Starbucks.
Workers launched an open-ended nationwide strike on Nov. 13, including stores in Philadelphia. Not long before that, Starbucks announced it would close hundreds of underperforming stores, including six in Philadelphia.
» READ MORE: Nationwide Starbucks strike includes workers at five Philadelphia locations
Sara Kelly, Starbucks’ chief partner officer, said in December, citing information from the union, that employees from 166 of the 215 strike locations wanted to return to work.
A union spokesperson acknowledged on Tuesday that while some striking workers have returned to their jobs, more than 1,000 remain on strike.
“The nationwide unfair labor practice strike that began in November is still ongoing and has become the longest in company history,” said Michelle Eisen, a Workers United spokesperson and 15-year Starbucks barista.