New England Biz Law Update
DEPOSIT PHOTOS
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has ruled that Starbucks illegally hampered a worker from testifying at a board hearing. Per court documents, the company violated federal labor law by telling Seattle-area workers they couldn’t testify when subpoenaed unless they arranged coverage for their shifts and threatening discipline if they failed to secure a fill-in.
The board also ruled that the company violated the NLRB by prohibiting employees from distributing union buttons during their paid breaks.
It’s not the first ruling that has gone against the company this year. In March, a judge ruled that Starbucks had committed “hundreds of unfair labor practices” during unionization efforts at its Buffalo, New York, area locations.
Judge Michael Rosas found that Starbucks illegally disciplined and fired employees “in response to union activity.” He also found that the company threatened workers and enforced dress codes and other company policies “more stringently against union supporters.”
In February, the NLRB found that Starbucks illegally fired workers at two Philadelphia stores. Violations there included spying on employees, threatening them, prohibiting them from discussing job conditions, and reducing work hours for union supporters.
Roughly 300 Starbucks stores have voted to unionize since late 2021. The company has since closed certain stores where organizers worked and fired some employees who were helping organize. Starbucks has consistently denied any closures or terminations were related to organizing activity.
