About a dozen striking Starbucks baristas confronted coffee-seeking customers in downtown Denver today as part of a “national day of action” to educate shoppers about the strike and ask that they stop buying coffee until the strike is resolved.
Organizers say 3,800 baristas have walked off the job in over 130 cities since the strike began Nov. 13 and that baristas in six unionized stores in Colorado are on strike, forcing the company to shut down at least one Colorado store in University Hills.
Downtown Denver’s events today took place at a unionized store at 16th and Tremont, which joined the strike on Thursday, and a nonunionized one at 1125 17th Street. Both remained open. The photos below show the picket at the Tremont location. Workers and others leafletted at the 17th Street store.
Starbucks has said it treats its workers fairly, and the strike is ineffective, while the Starbucks United Union says the company has a record number of labor law violations and refuses to negotiate seriously.
CORRECTION: The story was updated to reflect the fact that the store on 17th Street was leafletted and the Tremont store went on strike on Thursday.
