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Coming in Hot: Starbucks Objects to White House Meeting With Union Organizers


To call the ongoing unionization at Starbucks a situation that has been…brewing…for a few months now is an understatement.  With over 50 locations having voted to unionize, this has been far and away the top labor development through the start of 2022.

With Starbucks workers making great strides in unionizing, that has caught the attention of many, including the White House.  In fact, President Joe Biden recently invited Starbucks union organizers to the White House for a visit which garnered media attention for the unionization effort.  However, notably absent from the White House visit were Starbucks executives or Starbucks workers that did not support unionization efforts.

As you might guess, this did not sit well with Starbucks who felt the Biden Administration was significantly putting its finger on the scale to tip unionization efforts in favor of labor organizers.  Following the meeting at the White House, Starbucks sent a letter to Steve Riccheti, Counselor to President Biden, and made their issues known.  In the letter, Starbucks went so far as to request its own meeting at the White House in which employees that oppose unionization efforts would be afforded an audience with President Biden.

Will this letter result in another Starbucks summit?  If I were a betting man, I would say no.  For the time being, Starbucks continues its ongoing fight against unionization efforts with a decidedly pro-union White House starting to get involved.


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