Starbucks Seeks In-House Labor Attorney to Tame Organizing Wave

Starbucks Corp. is looking to hire an in-house labor lawyer to push back on a surge of union organizing nationwide.

The company said in a recent job posting that it wants an attorney with at least 12 years of experience in labor law to manage teams of outside lawyers and in-house paralegals. The candidate should also be versed in federal labor board procedure, defending against Section 10(j) injunctions and “strike contingency planning,” it said.

Until now, Seattle-based Starbucks has largely relied on outside lawyers to push back on the union drives, particularly the management-side firm Littler Mendelson.

The job posting is dated April 6, the day after the company ousted its general counsel, Rachel Gonzalez. Gonzalez, who raked in $5.3 million last year, will receive nearly $8 million on her way out, according to federal filings. Starbucks veteran Zabrina Jenkins is serving as interim general counsel.

As part of its defense against union-related attacks, Starbucks is also hiring a public relations manager. The role will serve as a “defender and advocate of the company’s reputation, with critical issues and crisis communications responsibilities,” the company said in an online job posting.

Three Starbucks stores in Ithaca, N.Y. voted to unionize Monday, joining more than a dozen others across the nation since the first victory in Buffalo, N.Y in December. Since then, nearly 200 other stores have filed union petitions.

The new positions come after Starbucks announced chairman emeritus Howard Schultz would return as interim chief executive officer. The previous CEO, Kevin Johnson, stepped down last month.

Starbucks spokesman Reggie Borges declined to elaborate on the positions.

—With assistance from Brian Baxter