Starbucks baristas in Madison last Thursday joined a national strike protesting the company’s new dress code, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. Starbucks Workers United, a union representing the company’s U.S. workers, said over 2,000 Starbucks baristas at 120 stores across the country have gone on strike since May 11.
The company’s new dress code places additional limits on what employees can wear under their green aprons, but Starbucks Workers United, which represents employees at 570 of Starbucks’ 10,000 company-owned U.S. stores, said the dress code should be subject to collective bargaining.
On May 14, the union said 1,000 workers staged walkouts at 75 U.S. stores. At the time, Starbucks said the strike had a limited impact and in some cases closed stores for less than an hour.
Starbucks and Starbucks Workers United have yet to reach a contract agreement since returning to the bargaining table in February 2024, and now the union has filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board alleging the company’s failure to bargain over the new dress code.
