Waterville Starbucks Workers File to Form Union

Baristas at the Starbucks coffee shop on Waterville Commons Drive in Waterville have filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board to unionize with Starbucks Workers United, according to the Morning Sentinel. The workers issued a statement last Thursday declaring that they seek to join their peers at more than 520 locations across the U.S. working together to win workplace protections on core issues including respect, living wages, racial and gender equality and fair scheduling.

“I’m excited to be joining the union along with my fellow partners, being a part of something that has had so much hard work put into it is a really amazing thing,” Evelyn Fennell, a shift supervisor for the last year at the Waterville shop, said in the statement. “I have so much love for our store and its partners, so now joining the union and being able to make our store a better place to work for everyone is really wonderful. I look forward to working hard with our union to ensure that all partners can feel heard, appreciated, and taken seriously.”

The Waterville staff said the election filing Thursday comes during one of the busiest times of the year for baristas as the company launches its popular holiday drink menu and continues the annual Red Cup promotion, which typically draw a flood of customers and an influx of orders.

“I’m honored to be a part of this labor movement and will continue to be so that everyone who has put on the green apron has a shot at living a dignified and comfortable life,” said Jacob Warren, a Waterville shift supervisor for seven years. “Now that we’re able to work with our union, we are grateful to be able to open more direct channels of communication with the folks higher up so that we can all keep serving the community in Waterville.”

Starbucks Workers United has won union elections across the country, with more than 500 stores now represented. In recent weeks, workers have voted to join that union in states including California, Utah, Missouri and Louisiana. Biddeford Starbucks baristas were the first baristas in Maine to unionize. Portland Starbucks workers filed to unionize later that year, but the company closed the location shortly after in a blatant act of union busting. Last year, the NLRB accused Starbucks of illegally closing 23 stores, including the location in Portland, Maine.