Baristas unite outside Headrow Leeds Starbucks in call for increased union membership
A week of action to promote union membership among hospitality workers got underway outside Starbucks on the Headrow in Leeds yesterday.
Unite Community is joining forces with Unite Hospitality Workers, the Bakers Food and Allied Workers Union (BAFWU) and Leeds Gets Organised to support the campaign.
Members say they are focusing on Starbucks following the treatment of Starbucks workers in the USA, who have tried to unionise. In a recent landmark case, for example, Hannah Whitbeck from Michigan was sacked for trying to start a union in her branch of Starbucks, a move which many workers there supported.
The unions involved in the week of action want Starbucks workers in the UK to become unionised to protect their interests. US Starbucks workers have sent a supportive and encouraging message to the campaign.
The message states: “Workers at more than 245 Starbucks stores in the United States have made their voices heard and won a seat at the table. Starbucks claims that they are a progressive company that cares about its partners, but they are fighting us with everything they’ve got.”
“We’ve decided to form a union because we know this is the only way for us to improve our working conditions.”
Unite Community Branch Campaigns Co-ordinator, Gerry Lavery, points out that the struggle for unionisation in the hospitality industry is wider than just Starbucks, however.
He said: “A recent report into conditions for hospitality workers makes for horrifying reading and is, therefore, a powerful testament to the need for increased unionisation. Currently, just over 4 per cent of the hospitality workers are unionised, according to the report.
“The report also found that young people (aged 16-24 years old) are over-represented in the hospitality sector, and because of minimum-wage rules are paid less than older workers. They also tend to have less work experience and so are less likely to be aware of their rights.”
The drive for increased unionisation in the hospitality sector will culminate in campaigning in Leeds as part of a Global Day of Action to unionise hospitality workers. Campaigners will assemble outside the Griffin Hotel on Boar Lane in Leeds city centre on Thursday, November 17 at 11am to launch the day’s activities.