A Federal judge ruled on Thursday that Starbucks must rehire the employees it fired for unionizing. Starbucks disagrees with the ruling.
A US federal judge ordered Starbucks to rehire its seven employees who were reportedly dismissed for organizing a union on Thursday, 18 August. This can be seen as a triumph for labor rights organizations and workers.
Judge Sheryl Lipman from the U.S. Department of Justice ordered the company to post the court order in the store and make an offer to rehire the workers within five days. The National Labor Relations Board contested the dismissal. They said that Starbucks had interfered with the workers’ ability to organize a union in February.
According to the Washington Post, all seven of the fired workers were supporting Starbucks Workers United’s union advocacy at the time of their dismissal. The judge ruled that there was enough proof to show that the company’s anti-Union stance was the reason for the firings.
Starbucks disagrees with the ruling in favor of the workers
In its official statement regarding the matter, the franchise disagreed with the ruling. The spokesperson said that it would appeal the court’s verdict.
The Starbucks spokesperson, Reggie Borges, said to The Washington Post, “We strongly disagree with the judge’s ruling. These individuals violated numerous policies and failed to maintain a secure work environment and safety standards. Interest in a union does not exempt partners from following policies that are in place to protect partners, our customers, and the communities we serve.”
Starbucks opposes the unionization movements that are sweeping franchise locations throughout the United States. It has denied the infringement allegation and claimed the workers were fired for breaking company rules. This included keeping the store open past its regular closing time so the workers could meet up. The company said that they even permitted non-staff members, such as a television team, to enter the building after hours. The staff members had tried to unionize the Memphis branch of the company.
The ruling is a crucial step so that the workers can exercise their rights: NLRB
“Today’s federal court decision ordering Starbucks to reinstate the seven unlawfully fired workers in Memphis is a crucial step in ensuring that these workers, and all Starbucks workers, can freely exercise their right to join together to improve their working conditions and form a union,” said Jennifer Abruzzo, who is the labor board’s general counsel.
“Starbucks and other employees should take note that National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), will continue to vigorously protect workers’ rights to organize without interference from their employers,” she continued.
Hundreds of allegations of misconduct against Starbucks regarding the union campaign are currently being looked into by the NLRB. This includes claims that the company fired staff members, closed stores to crush unions, and threatened and intimidated workers to keep them from organizing.
In the Memphis “wrongful” firing case, the NLRB had also filed the motion. Starbucks has recently faced intense criticism, and the court decision on Thursday is likely to make matters worse for them.