Starbucks Workers United Sends Detailed Contract Proposal, Pushing to Restart Bargaining

Starbucks Workers United put concrete numbers on the table last month, sending Starbucks a comprehensive proposed contract that includes a $17 minimum wage, 4% annual raises, and a requirement that at least three staffers be scheduled on the floor whenever a café is open. The union disclosed the proposal on a call with investors Friday, March 13, as both sides navigate what to do next after more than four years without a collective bargaining agreement.

Starbucks has not yet responded to the substance of the offer. Instead, spokesperson Jaci Anderson said the company wants to get back to talking: "Starbucks has proposed to resume in-person bargaining with Workers United on March 30 and to remain available for continued negotiations throughout April." The company declined to comment on the union's specific demands, saying only that it has been "engaging in good faith bargaining."

Barista Jasmine Leli, in an emailed statement from the union, kept the tone measured. "We are in conversation with the company about the road back to the bargaining table," she said. "It's time to get a fair contract done so we can all move forward."

The gap between sending a proposal and actually resuming negotiations reflects how complicated this relationship has become. Talks broke down in late 2024 after monthly in-person bargaining sessions through the spring and summer had made progress on non-economic issues but stalled on wages and benefits. The union staged what it called its longest strike to date over the holiday season, accusing Starbucks of refusing to fairly negotiate. The parties last met for mediation in April 2025, after both sides agreed in February 2025 to bring in a mediator and drop their mutual lawsuits, which had stemmed from a dispute over the union's use of the Starbucks name and logo during the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in October 2023.

There is also a procedural disagreement simmering beneath the scheduling talk. Starbucks has proposed conducting bargaining sessions without audio or video recording, arguing that the absence of cameras would make participants more comfortable with open discussion. The union has previously pushed for videoconference access so more members can observe and participate in negotiations.

Workers United represents about 600 of Starbucks' roughly 10,000 company-run stores, or about 6% of U.S. company-owned locations according to regulatory filings, and more than 9,000 workers. The union framed the remaining financial dispute in pointed terms in recent materials, arguing the cost of settling is "less than a single average day's sales, less than 4 months of CEO Niccol's 2024 compensation, less than one quarter of one percent of the company's annual revenue."

Whether Starbucks addresses the proposal's terms before March 30, or whether both sides can agree on how bargaining sessions are structured, will determine whether this latest push breaks a deadlock that has outlasted Brian Niccol's first full year running the company.