Starbucks Corp (NASDAQ:SBUX) workers across more than 200 US stores are set to participate in the largest strike to date in a two-year effort to unionize.
Organized by the Workers United union, the "Red Cup Rebellion" coincides with Starbucks' annual Red Cup Day, typically one of the busiest days of the year.
The union anticipates over 5,000 workers joining the strike to protest issues such as understaffing, particularly during promotional events like Red Cup Day.
Starbucks has downplayed the potential impact of the strike, emphasizing that it would affect only a "small subset" of its 9,600 company-owned U.S. stores.
The company remains at odds with the unionization effort, having faced 111 complaints for unfair labor practices, claiming Workers United refuses to schedule bargaining sessions. Legal actions between Starbucks and Workers United include a defamation lawsuit over a pro-Palestinian post on a union account.
Despite the protests, Starbucks reported a 12% increase in revenue to a record $36 billion for the 2023 fiscal year, ending October 1.
Shares of Starbucks gained 1% on Thursday morning in New York.