Thursday, October 5, Starbucks workers at the Highway 20 and Tharp store in Yuba City, California, filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to unionize.

Workers sent a letter to Starbucks CEO Laxman Narasimhan to announce their organizing campaign. In the letter, workers explained their decision to unionize: “The partners in this store navigate difficulties every day ranging from understaffed floors for business needs, product shortages, broken equipment, limited hours, to health and safety concerns. Starbucks didn’t create all of these issues, but they have failed to provide longterm or timely solutions. Despite these shortcomings, baristas manage and continue to make meaningful connections with customers and, not only achieve, but far surpass goals as a top store in our district. However, as partners in this company, we deserve the support and acknowledgment of management in addressing these concerns.”

These Yuba City Starbucks employees are joining a nationwide movement of over 9,000 baristas organizing for better working conditions, higher wages, and consistent schedules.

“We’re so proud of how far our partners have come in making this happen, and we are all really excited to step towards joining baristas across the country in getting a fair deal for all the partners in our store,” said J.J. Dizon, a six-year store supervisor at the Yuba City location.

Starbucks has launched a ruthless union-busting campaign that includes threatening workers’ access to benefits. The NLRB has issued over 100 complaints against the company, encompassing over 1,600 violations of federal labor law.

Despite Starbucks’ anti-union campaign, over 360 Starbucks stores in 41 states and the District of Columbia have successfully unionized since December 2021.