The fight between the union representing thousands of Starbucks baristas and their employer is heating up, as workers call for a boycott.

Starbucks Workers United announced the boycott — spurred by stalled contract negotiations — on Tuesday. Unionized employees are pressing customers to not spend money at Starbucks until a contract with improved pay, hours and staffing is reached, along with a mitigation of alleged labor law violations.

We're fed up with Starbucks refusing to finalize a fair union contract that would cost the company less than one day's sales," Workers United wrote on Instagram.

Starbucks spokesperson Jaci Anderson responded: "As we have always been, we're committed to engaging in productive bargaining."

Workers United pointed to its publicized statement.

"At a time when working-class people across the country are struggling in a challenging economy, it is no longer possible to be both a Starbucks customer and in support of workers," the union said. "Choosing to spend money at Starbucks is choosing a law-breaking corporation over the baristas who make your coffee everyday exactly as you ask for it."

The call to action came the same day as the return of the brand's beloved pumpkin spice latte. Anderson said Starbucks has seen no impact to its business due to the boycott.

The longstanding conflict to finalize the first union contract at Starbucks has spanned five years.

Close to 17,000 stores are located in the U.S. Workers United represents workers in around 700 coffeehouses.

Nationwide, more than 200 stores went on strike in November. Seattle was a focal point in these protests, with several locations participating in the metro area. Most of the striking employees returned to work the next month.

"After the conclusion of the biggest strike in Starbucks history earlier this year, our union of over 12,000 baristas got the company to meet us at the bargaining table again," the union wrote. "Unfortunately, Starbucks has only dragged their feet instead of making real movement toward finalizing union contracts."

Workers United claims that the Seattle-based coffee giant has failed to address "low pay, understaffing, weak protections, inaccessible hours and more." It disapproves of the money spent on artificial intelligence, social media advertising and compensation for CEO Brian Niccol.

But according to Anderson, "Starbucks has competitive pay, industry-leading benefits, and meaningful opportunities to grow a career," she said. "People love working at Starbucks.

In the meantime, the union is pushing customers to support other unionized coffee shops, including Seattle's General Porpoise.

The news comes as Washingtonians wonder whether Starbucks is shifting away from its Seattle roots.

Earlier this month, it announced the layoffs of 224 workers at its Sodo headquarters and various remote locations. Some declined to move to Nashville, Tenn., where the company aims to open a new corporate office housing 2,000 workers.

Under Niccol's leadership since September 2024, Starbucks has also shuttered coffeehouses around the U.S., including dozens in Washington, and initiated a slew of job cuts.

As of late, the company is performing well in the eyes of stockholders. Starbucks beat analyst projections in its most recent quarterly earnings, recording $9.3 billion in revenue — a 1% drop year over year.

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