The biggest flight attendant union in the United States, representing tens of thousands of crew members at major carriers like United, Alaska, Frontier, and Endeavor, is calling on flight attendants to boycott one of their favorite pre-flight rituals: a much-needed caffeinated beverage from Starbucks.
Sara Nelson, the firebrand leader of the Association of Flight Attendants (AFA-CWA), took to social media earlier this week, calling on the men and women she represents to boycott Starbucks over the Seattle-based company’s alleged union-busting antics.
“Pumpkin spice isn’t so nice without a contract!” Nelson said in her Instagram post, imploring flight attendants to put pressure on Starbucks to reach a contract with its workers who have voted to unionize under the banner of Starbucks Workers United.
“Starbucks workers are fighting for a fair union contract that guarantees better pay, fair schedules, and respect on the job — the same things we fight for as Flight Attendants,” Nelson explained.
“Starbucks ranks number 1 in labor violations, more than any company in modern US history – with over 400 confirmed labor law violations and hundreds more waiting to be heard.”
Nelson added: “When workers have to take on one of the biggest corporations in the world, they shouldn’t have to do it alone.”
Starbucks Workers United has won elections at nearly 700 locations, but the union has yet to reach a formal contract with the head office. Their demands include a minimum starting pay of $17 per hour, non-discrimination and just cause protections, health and safety protections, and a minimum of three workers on the floor at any one time.
Starbucks has been accused of failing to engage with the union, while moving to close down some locations that have chosen to unionize.
Rather than being represented by one of America’s leading unions, Starbucks Workers United started as a grassroots movement at just one store in Buffalo, New York, in 2021. Since that first store unionized, the movement quickly spread, with more than 700 locations now under the Starbucks Workers United banner.
Nelson says that mass strikes have already been attempted in an effort to get Starbucks management to negotiate at the table, but with little movement, she is now rallying her members to heap further pressure on CEO Brian Niccol.
‘We’ve got to have their backs so management everywhere will see workers standing together and against corporate greed,” Nelson explained.
Of course, when a company like Starbucks has such a strong foothold in the market, especially in airport concessions, a boycott is a big ask when there are few other options.
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