Starbucks denies union-busting at Paso Robles store

Starbucks Workers United, the union representing Starbucks employees, filed a complaint Friday with the National Labor Relations Board against the coffee company for alleged violations at its location in Paso Robles, the union said in a news release.

The complaint alleges violations of federal labor law, accusing the managers at the coffee company’s Creston and Sherwood location of overtly discouraging union activity.

“Partners at the Paso Robles stores were subjected to mandatory captive-audience meetings and interrogations about their support for unionization in a blatant attempt to subvert the National Labor Relations Act and intimidate partners from collective bargaining,” the release said.

Marcus Dixon, the named employee in the complaint, said in the release that the coffee company betrayed him and left him in a working environment where he no longer felt valued, which lead to his resignation in November.

“I gave Starbucks everything, and they still made me feel like a number to them, only there to serve their profits,” Dixon said. “While I’m sad that I won’t get to see the changes my experience will bring in my old store, I’m glad I get to stand up and make a difference. No one deserves to be singled out simply for caring about others. This proved to me that Starbucks does not care about the progressive values that brought me to this company, and I will never trust them again.”

The NLRB is an independent federal agency that provides oversight on labor law and rights. The complaint will be heard in front of an administrative judge within the agency on May 2.

“We disagree with the conclusions issued and maintain that the actions taken at our Creston & Sherwood store in Paso Robles, CA, were lawful and consistent with our policies,” Rachel Wall, spokesperson for Starbucks, told The Tribune in an email. “We are considering all options to obtain a full legal review of the matter as we continue to work to side-by-side with our partners to deliver the Starbucks experience and reinvent our company for the future.”

What the Starbucks complaint says

According to the complaint, store manager Reece Scrivner and district manager Jess Donovan held a “mandatory or effectively mandatory captive-audience meeting in order to discourage union activity.”

At the May 18 meeting, the complaint alleges that the managers interrogated employees about their union activities and the union activities of other employees. Managers allegedly “threatened employees with loss of benefits by telling employees that certain benefits may not be available and could not be guaranteed if employees unionized,” the complaint said.

Starbucks denies this, Wall said, calling the questions “lawful, not interrogatory.”

“The manager offered partners the opportunity to ask any questions and encouraged them to do their own research to form an educated opinion on the issue of unions,” she said.

Wall added that no manager has ever threatened loss of benefits to employees, and that all statements made in meetings are compliant with the National Labor Relations Act.

Dixon received a final written warning related to his alleged union activities or sympathies on May 25, the union said. He later resigned from the company.

Wall told The Tribune that Dixon had been disciplined multiple times for repeated incidents, including speaking inappropriately and profanely with his peers about the work environment — in some cases in front of customers. The comments made some other employees uncomfortable, Wall said.

The complaint accuses the managers of interfering with, restraining and coercing employees in unionizing and union activities in violation of the National Labor Relations Act. The complaint also alleges the managers discriminated in hiring, tenure or terms and conditions of employment by discouraging union membership.

The union is seeking to have Scrivner read the complaint to all employees in the presence of a National Labor Relations Board agent or have a board agent read the complaint themselves. It also asks for the complaint, along with the board’s explanation of employee rights, to be physically posted in the store for the next 120 days.

The union is also looking for the Paso Robles Starbucks to allow one of its agents to conduct training on the National Labor Relations Act and unfair labor practices for managers and supervisors “to ensure future compliance with the law,” the complaint said.

The union “seeks all other relief as may be just and proper to remedy the unfair labor practices alleged,” the complaint says.

“We have consistently encouraged our partners to exercise their right to vote in union elections and contend that this decision — as well as others recently issued by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) — could undermine our ability to share factual information and our perspective with partners so that they can make informed, balanced decisions regarding union representation,” Wall said.

A hearing regarding the complaint is scheduled for May 2 in Los Angeles, the release said.