A National Labor Relations Board official is seeking a nationwide court order to halt Starbucks Corp.’s allegedly illegal union-busting campaign.
Starbucks has allegedly been committing a host of labor law violations to snuff out labor organizing, including closing stores, discriminating against union supporters, promising benefits to deter union support, and refusing to bargain with the union, according to the petition filed Tuesday in federal court.
“Absent immediate interim relief, Starbucks will achieve its goal, through unlawful means, of irreparably harming the campaign in Buffalo, and sending a clear chilling message to its employees across the country,” NLRB Buffalo Regional Director Linda Leslie said in a statement.
The court petition is an escalation of the NLRB legal division’s battle against the coffee chain. It names several top executives, including CEO Howard Schultz, as allegedly committing unfair labor practices.
Starbucks has denied wrongdoing and said it’s negotiating with some of the more than 150 stores that have voted to unionize with Workers United, an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union.
“As we have said previously, we believe these claims are false and will be prepared to defend our case,” Starbucks spokesman Reggie Borges said in response to the petition.
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