"Excessive Events Pushed"... Starbucks Korea Establishes Labor Union

"Unilateral Decisions Ignoring Demands"

Starbucks Korea has formed the first labor union in the domestic franchise coffee industry.

According to the Korean Federation of Chemical, Textile, and Food Workers Unions, which is under the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), the Korean subsidiary of Starbucks, Starbucks Korea, joined the KCTU Chemical, Textile, and Food Industry Union on July 16 and established the Starbucks branch.

A Starbucks store in downtown Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

The branch explained the reason for forming the union, stating, "The company limited communication channels with partners through a superficial system called the 'Sympathy Meeting' and attempted to address immediate issues with appeasing methods rather than direct solutions. While ignoring our demands, the company has instead unilaterally implemented even more excessive events and operational policies than before."

Other issues cited included a shrinking number of employees per shift, an increasing number of promotions and events, rising work intensity, wages insufficient for cost-of-living, work schedules that make side jobs difficult, and challenges in applying for industrial accident compensation.

Starbucks Korea employs approximately 23,000 people, and the company directly hires not only head office staff but also store workers.

The company issued an official statement, saying, "We will communicate with the union in accordance with the relevant laws and regulations."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.