The action comes amid a bitter labour fight between at the coffee giant.
Image source, ReutersThe union representing thousands of Starbucks workers in the US is staging a walkout on one of the coffee chain’s busiest days of the year.
The action comes amid a bitter fight between Starbucks and Starbucks Workers United, which started organising workers at the company in 2021.
The two sides have yet to agree a contract.
Roughly 200 stores are expected to be affected by the 16 November work stoppage.
The protest is the second to coincide with Starbucks’ ‘Red Cup’ day, when the company distributes reusable, holiday-themed cups.
In some locations, the walkout is set to last just a few hours, while in others it is expected to shutter the store for most of the day.
The union said the action was aimed at calling attention to Starbucks’ refusal to fairly negotiate a contract.
Members are also protesting work conditions, including inadequate staffing on promotional days.
“We are striking this Red Cup Day in response to understaffing, especially during new promotional days,” Caitlin Power, a barista in Gardner, Massachusetts said in a statement.
“This leaves us overwhelmed, and customers with long wait times. We are ready to see Starbucks at the bargaining table in good faith so we can address these issues.”
Starbucks, which operates more than 10,000 stores across the US, said it did not expect major disruption.
“We are aware that Workers United has publicized a day of action at a small subset of our US stores this week,” Starbucks said in a statement to CBS, the BBC’s American news partner.
It said it hoped the union’s “priorities will shift to include the shared success of our partners and working to negotiate union contracts for those they represent.”
Since 2021, workers at roughly 360 of the company’s more than 10,000 locations in the US have voted to join the union.
Starbucks has fiercely opposed the campaign.
Union members say it has dragged its feet at the negotiating table and gone so far as to fire workers and shut stores in an effort to stop the movement.
Administrative law judges in the US have found the company has repeatedly violated labour laws.
Starbucks, which typically appeals the findings, has denied wrongdoing.
Last year, former boss Howard Schultz was forced to appear before Congress to answer for the union’s claims.
The union campaign at Starbucks has been closely watched, and is credited with helping to galvanise workers at other companies.