Topline Employees at a Starbucks in Buffalo, New York, voted to unionize Thursday the National Labor Relations Board said, and it could become the first of the coffee giant’s U.S. stores to form a union (a second Starbucks in Buffalo voted down the measure). Starbucks employees celebrate after one of the three stories in Buffalo, New York that held a union … [+] election votes in favor of a union on December 9, 2021. (Photo by Eleonore SENS / AFP) (Photo by ELEONORE SENS/AFP via Getty Images) AFP via Getty Images Key Facts Around 100 workers at three separate Starbucks locations voted in Thursday’s union election. Workers at a store in Buffalo’s Elmwood neighborhood voted 19-8 in favor of a union, a second location rejected unionization (12-8) and the results at a third store were undecided as of 3:18 p.m. ET as the number of votes challenged could tilt the final count in either direction. Starbucks operates nearly 9,000 stores in the U.S. and employs roughly 235,000 people at those locations—none had been unionized. Workers at the three locations are demanding to discuss their wages and work environment, and baristas told Reuters they were struggling with a pandemic-era surge in mobile app orders. Starbucks has vehemently opposed the union drive, sending legendary former CEO Howard Schultz to the Buffalo locations to persuade the workers to vote against a union, according to CNBC. A Starbucks spokesperson told Forbes by email: “We are grateful for each partner who exercised their right to vote,” adding it… Click below to read the full story from Forbes
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