ATLANTA — Two metro Atlanta Starbucks locations joined together with over 400 stores in voting to unionize.
According to a post from Starbucks Workers United on the social media platform X, these are locations for the stores:
- Holcomb Bridge and Holcomb Woods – Roswell
- North Point and Haynes Bridge – Alpharetta
These locations join only a handful of others in the metro Atlanta area that have voted to unionize, bringing the total to 6.
In July, organizing stores wrote to the Starbucks CEO, stating that employees feel the company "has been able to ignore our individual voices" on several issues.
"We make the company’s money, and we deserve to have a say," the letter read in part.
In February, responding to the national union drive at Starbucks stores, the company said it had agreed with Workers United to "begin discussions on a foundational framework designed to achieve collective bargaining agreements, including a fair process for organizing, and the resolution of some outstanding litigation."
In a new statement sent to 11Alive, the company added: "At Starbucks we believe that our direct relationship as partners is core to the experiences we create in our stores, and we respect our partners' rights to have a choice on the topic of unions. We are committed to delivering on our promise to offer a bridge to a better future to all Starbucks partners.”
The July letter, sent on behalf of 15 stores including the two in metro Atlanta, asserted that employees are not being paid livable wages, nor are they given respect or fair scheduling. It also adds that these issues affect customers who "want better from the company and for our community," claiming that the business had lost customers due to these problems.
The letter also stated in part, "We can no longer tolerate these impacts on our community, our customers, and our partners. We are coming together to make our stores a better place for all of us and look forward to working with Starbucks to create these vitally needed changes."