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The Trust Project

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A Starbucks sign hangs in a window
Denver’s 16th and Tremont Starbucks on March 4, 2022. It was the metro’s second location to independently unionize. (Olivia Sun, The Colorado Sun via Report for America)

Starbucks must offer a job back to a fired Colorado worker, a judge ruled last week. 

Federal administrative law judge Ira Sandron said the coffee retailer “engaged in certain unfair labor practices” and must offer Alendra Harris her job back with full payment of any lost earnings.

Harris was fired Nov. 18 from her role as a shift supervisor at the Superior location, the first in the state to unionize. Sandron’s decision heads for adoption of the full labor board.

In an email to The Colorado Sun, Starbucks said it disagreed with the judge and that the firing was due to policy violations.

“We firmly disagree with the administrative law judge’s recommendations and intend to file exceptions — or an appeal — in this matter,” a Starbucks spokesperson wrote. “It was not in retaliation for their participation in, or support of, any concerted union activities.”

This is a segment from Saturday’s What’s Working column. Read the full column here.

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Methods:

National Labor Relations Board: See Starbucks Corporation vs Workers United — Chicago and Midwest National Joint Board (SEIU), Local 304, Dec. 19, 2023. Source link.

Type of Story: News

Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.

Tamara Chuang writes about Colorado business and the local economy for The Colorado Sun, which she cofounded in 2018 with a mission to make sure quality local journalism is a sustainable business. Her focus on the economy during the pandemic...