Judge Finds Starbucks Guilty of Extensive Union-Busting

[Magda Hassan]

Judge Finds Starbucks Guilty of Extensive Union-Busting

The IWW Scores Big Victory Over Global Coffee Chain

New York, NY (Dec. 23, 2008)- Following a lengthy trial here last
year, a National Labor Relations Board judge has found Starbucks
guilty of extensive violations of federal labor law in its bid to
counter the IWW Starbucks Workers Union. In an 88-page decision,
Judge Mindy E. Landow found, among other things, that Starbucks
maintained multiple policies which interfered with workers' right to
communicate about the union and about working conditions; terminated
three workers in retaliation for union activity; and repeatedly
discriminated against union supporters. The decision comes despite a
2006 New York settlement in which Starbucks pledged to stop illegal
anti-union activities and mirrors federal government action against
the company for its conduct toward baristas in Minnesota and Michigan.

"The judge's decision coupled with previous government findings
expose Starbucks for what it is --- a union-busting corporation that
will go to staggering lengths to interfere with the right to freedom
of association," said Daniel Gross, a barista and member of the IWW
Starbucks Workers Union found to have been unlawfully terminated by
the coffee giant. "In these trying economic times of mass layoffs
and slashed work hours, it's more important than ever that Starbucks
and every corporation is confronted with a social movement that
insists on the right to an independent voice on the job."

The Board decision is the latest blow against a company that has
experienced a stunning fall from grace. From a precipitous decrease
in customer demand to its increasingly tattered socially responsible
image, the myriad of challenges facing Starbucks has resulted in the
company losing over half its value from just a year ago. The
decision also represents a significant victory for the IWW Starbucks
Workers Union which continues to grow across the country with
baristas taking creative and determined actions to improve the
security of works hours and win respect on the job. Starbucks faces
another Labor Board trial next month in Grand Rapids, Michigan over
illegal union-busting.

"For the first time, a judge has confirmed the existence of a
nationally coordinated anti-union operation at Starbucks," said
Stuart Lichten, the attorney for the IWW Starbucks Workers Union in
the case. "This decision conclusively establishes Starbucks'
animosity toward labor organizing."

The union is confident that Judge Landow's copiously documented and
well-reasoned 88-page decision will be upheld by the National Labor
Relations Board in Washington, D.C. should Starbucks appeal. The
victory is sure to be gratifying for the union's international
supporters who conducted spirited global days of action in defense of
Isis Saenz, Joe Agins, Jr., and Daniel Gross after their terminations
which the Board has now found to be unlawful.

The National Labor Relations Board attorneys on the case were Burt
Pearlstone and Audrey Eveillard. The union's attorney Stuart Lichten
is a partner at Schwartz, Licthen & Bright, a prominent New York City
labor law firm. Starbucks was represented by union-avoidance lawyers
Daniel Nash, Stacey Eisenstein, and Nicole Morgan at corporate firm
Akin Gump.

The IWW Starbucks Workers Union (StarbucksUnion.org) is an
organization of almost 300 current and former Starbucks employees
united for a living wage, secure work hours, and respect on the job.
Founded in 2004, the union uses direct action, litigation, and
advocacy to both make systemic improvements at Starbucks and take on
the company over unfair treatment of individual baristas.

The Industrial Workers of the World (iww.org) is a rank and file
labor union dedicated to democracy in the workplace and global
solidarity.