Revolutionary Unionism uses the NLRB and Unfair Labor Practices to Bolster Flagging Campaign

Frustrated by Low Wages, Starbucks Employees Sow Union Seeds
By John Davisson
Columbia Spectator

As if ordering a cup of coffee wasn’t complicated enough these days, things could get even muckier if federal labor law weighs in.

Since 2004, a group of baristas known as the Starbucks Workers Union has sought collective bargaining rights for the chain’s employees citywide, citing a need for improved pay and healthier working conditions.

While SWU has been unable to gain recognition from Starbucks or the National Labor Relations Board, the federal body that mediates labor disputes in the private sector, members are hoping that a recent wave of unfair labor allegations against the company might reverse its fortunes.

“Never before has such a [fundamentally] anti-union and anti-worker company been so successful at creating a socially responsible image,” said [Daniel] Gross, an SWU organizer and Starbucks barista. “They’ve embraced the Wal-Mart style of union-busting.”

Continued...