A federal judge heard testimony and arguments in an injunction hearing this week regarding Starbucks potentially reinstating seven workers fired at its Poplar and Highland location in February amid unionization efforts.

U.S. District Judge Sheryl Lipman's presided over the hearing Thursday and Friday in a Memphis federal courthouse.

The National Labor Relations Board sought an injunction hearing on behalf of the fired workers known as the “Memphis Seven.” The NLRB accused Starbucks of directing “coercive” measures against its employees following the start of its union efforts.

Starbucks has said the employees were fired due to reported "safety and security violations."

The injunction hearing is expected to conclude next week, though it is unclear when a potential ruling on the matter will occur.

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Current Starbucks workers at the Memphis store at 3388 Poplar Ave., who supported the union efforts, testified Thursday the firings impacted public union support in the workplace and they feared by showing support they could potentially lose their jobs.

Several members of the "Memphis Seven" also testified the reported "safety and security violations" that led to their firings were due to unionizing and they were not  aware of these violations until after those union efforts began.

Starbucks lawyers in the cross-examination process Thursday and again on Friday argued the "Memphis Seven" firings did not slow down the union movement at the store or nationwide, citing the successful union vote at the store Tuesday and the 120-plus U.S. stores that have unionized in 2022.

Starbucks lawyers also argued the terminated employees violated those "safety and security" procedures and that alone led to their termination, and not union organizing.

A Starbucks spokesperson told The Commercial Appeal the reported violations the former workers committed that led to their firings in February included:

• Several partners (employees) remained in the store and opened a locked door after the close of business without permission or authority.

• Non-partners and those who are not on shift or otherwise not actively closing the store are not allowed access to the store when it is closed for business. Despite this, partners allowed unauthorized individuals into the closed store.

• Partners also let these unauthorized individuals behind the line and in the back of house while leaving the unlocked door unattended.

• One partner also opened the store safe when the partner was not the designated cash controller, and another allowed this violation to occur.

The federal court hearing followed a successful union campaign by the “Memphis Seven” as Starbucks workers at that location Tuesday voted 11-3 in favor of unionization as certified by the NLRB.

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National attention increased on this Memphis Starbucks location after the seven workers were fired, including nearly the entire union organizing committee. The firing of the “Memphis Seven” led to increased protests across the country in support of their efforts amid a nationwide rise in more Starbucks stores seeking unionization.

The former Starbucks workers also sought back pay for the four months since their firings.

The Memphis Starbucks was the third one in Tennessee to unionize, following two Knoxville locations. There are more than 270 Starbucks union petitions across 34 states currently and 100 stores have voted to unionize, according to the NLRB.

Omer Yusuf covers the Ford project in Haywood County, residential real estate, tourism and banking for The Commercial Appeal. He can be reached via email Omer.Yusuf@commercialappeal.com or followed on Twitter @OmerAYusuf.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Starbucks, NLRB go to court over fired Memphis workers