Starbucks Illegally Curbed Worker’s Testimony, Labor Board Rules

Starbucks Corp. illegally hampered a Seattle worker’s ability to testify at a National Labor Relations Board hearing in response to an agency subpoena, the NLRB ruled.

The NLRB affirmed an administrative law judge’s 2022 decision that the coffee giant violated federal labor law by telling workers they can’t testify when subpoenaed without getting a co-worker to cover their shift, and by threatening them with discipline if they failed to secure that coverage.

The worker who was subpoenaed eventually testified in a hearing before an NLRB regional director on a day they were scheduled to be off work.

The decision marks the second time the board has ruled against Starbucks since the nationwide organizing wave began in late 2021.

The NLRB previously ruled that Starbucks illegally refused to bargain with the union representing workers at its Seattle Roastery. The board also ruled against Starbucks in a Philadelphia case that involves labor law violations predating the current unionization campaign. Both cases are being litigated in federal appeals courts.

A bipartisan NLRB panel Tuesday affirmed Administrative Law Judge John Giannopoulos’ ruling without much comment.

The board also upheld the judge’s finding that Starbucks violated the National Labor Relations Act by prohibiting workers from distributing union buttons during breaks.

Republican member Marvin Kaplan split from his two Democratic colleagues on one detail, saying he didn’t believe that a manager’s statement to a worker distributing buttons violated the law. But he agreed that a subsequent statement by the same manager did constitute an unfair labor practice.

Starbucks disagrees with the decision and is exploring opportunities for further legal review, company spokesman Andrew Trull said.

The case is Starbucks Corp., N.L.R.B., Case 19-CA-289275, 6/20/23.