Editorial note: For the time being at least, the reality is people seeking a non-union Starbucks store can drive less than five or ten minutes in any direction from the one featured to find one (and many will).
A Starbucks in Cary became the first in the state to unionize, which followed efforts from multiple locations across the country.
A Starbucks in Cary became the first in the state of Illinois to unionize after votes were tallied earlier this week.
The final vote was counted April 26 and came out to 17-4, said Michael Mueller, a shift lead at the 620 Northwest Highway location. The Starbucks has 27 employees there, he said. The union will run through the Workers United Labor Union.
While Mueller said he expects the union to bring several benefits to the location’s employees, he said he hopes more than anything it provides them more of a voice within the company.
A Starbucks spokesperson said the company thinks the employees and corporation work better without a union, but that they will respect the process.
The location is one (1) of many Starbucks stores across the country opting to unionize. Efforts ramped up after a store in Buffalo, New York, was able to do so in December, Mueller said.
Employees at the Cary location hope to see higher pay and more work-life balance as a result of the unionization, he said.
Read more here.
It certainly is one’s prerogative to dismiss the worker looking for $15 – $23 an hour so they can pay their bills, afford healthcare to take care of themselves or a sick child, or not have to work 60 hours a week. By all means, drive those 5 or 10 more minutes. But do so with the knowledge that total gross profit for Starbucks in 2021 was over $20 billion. And know the following: it takes 11 days to make up (count) one million seconds, and it takes 31.5 years to count one billion seconds. (Go ahead and do the math on 20 billion).
Perhaps a bit more compassion for the people making your designer coffee saves one those extra 5 or 10 minutes, and makes a better world.