{"id":27596,"date":"2023-07-27T13:10:53","date_gmt":"2023-07-27T20:10:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=27596"},"modified":"2023-07-27T13:10:54","modified_gmt":"2023-07-27T20:10:54","slug":"will-peets-coffee-join-starbucks-in-union-movement-vote-begins-at-3-bay-area-cafes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2023\/07\/27\/will-peets-coffee-join-starbucks-in-union-movement-vote-begins-at-3-bay-area-cafes\/","title":{"rendered":"Will Peet\u2019s Coffee join Starbucks in union movement? Vote begins at 3 Bay Area cafes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

<\/a>Matt Yan<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

July 25, 2023 (SFChronicle.com)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Miguel
Miguel Ochoa, left, a Peet\u2019s Coffee team member, and\u00a0Deya Rith, a shift lead, in Oakland. Workers at\u00a0Peet\u2019s start voting Tuesday on unionization.Amaya Edwards\/The Chronicle<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

While working at Peet\u2019s Coffee, Terri McFadden has often felt unsafe, but nothing compares to when a customer threw hot water at him and his manager. He fell and dealt with burns on the side of his face.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s by far the most traumatic thing that has happened at work,\u201d said McFadden, a shift lead at the Peet\u2019s in Oakland\u2019s Temescal neighborhood. After the incident in March \u2014 which he reported to the company \u2014 he was only permitted to go home roughly 30 minutes early, he said. The anxiety lingers, and he fears for his safety at work. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think any worker deserves to feel that way \u2014 stepping into what should be a safe space for them,\u201d he said. He wants a permanent security guard at his store.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A safer workplace is one of the many demands that workers at three Bay Area Peet\u2019s Coffee locations will consider Tuesday, July 25, as they vote on whether they want to unionize.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If a simple majority of workers votes \u201cyes,\u201d they\u2019ll join the Industrial Workers of the World Industrial Union 460<\/a> (IWW IU460), which represents food and retail workers. The three stores \u2014 2501 Telegraph Ave. in Berkeley, 5095 Telegraph Ave., #1d (Temescal) and 4050 Piedmont Ave. in Oakland \u2014 filed petitions<\/a> to the National Labor Relations Board in June. The cafes would follow the Peet\u2019s in North Davis, where employees this year<\/a> voted to join the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1021 and made it the first Peet\u2019s to unionize.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think the hope is that with these efforts of organizing ourselves, we can begin to make some improvements,\u201d said Miguel Ochoa, who works at the Temescal cafe. \u201cWe really do enjoy working (at Peet\u2019s).\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among their demands<\/a>, they want a standard base pay rate and cost of living adjustments; expanded benefits like better health care for part-time employees; safer workplaces; and \u201cstringent accountability standards for management.\u201d More broadly, workers want a voice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI want to see a change in the workplace environment in which workers actually have the power and a say in how the store operates, and for Peet\u2019s and upper management to really take accountability for how they treat their workers,\u201d said Deya Rith, another shift lead at the Temescal cafe. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a statement, Peet\u2019s Coffee declined to comment on specific incidents but said it is \u201ccommitted to providing a safe and healthy work environment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLike so many in the service sector, especially in the Bay Area, we are dealing with seismic social change,\u201d the statement read. \u201cUnder these circumstances, we will strive to address the concerns of our employees and work together to keep Peet\u2019s the warm, welcoming community places they always have been.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peet\u2019s has 170 retail locations in California and originated in the Bay Area, with founder Alfred Peet opening his first shop in North Berkeley in 1966. Because Peet\u2019s has deep roots in the Bay Area, other workers nearby could be inspired by the unionizing efforts of their colleagues and start their own, said Ken Jacobs, the chair of UC Berkeley\u2019s Labor Center. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having so many cafes in one area \u201cmakes it easier for the workers to put greater pressure on the company to come to the table and bargain,\u201d Jacobs added. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peet\u2019s Coffee said its commitment to its employees won\u2019t change, no matter the outcome of the union vote. \u201cOur story began here in the Bay Area and we look forward to writing the next chapter together with our employees,\u201d the statement read.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rith decided to get involved in organizing when the North Davis location unionized. \u201cIt really started this fire and conversation because you see what\u2019s happening at Starbucks,\u201d Rith said. \u201cBut at Peet\u2019s \u2014 at the time \u2014 I didn\u2019t think it was possible.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since 2021<\/a>, Starbucks baristas nationwide have been fighting to unionize their stores amid complaints<\/a> that the corporation is union busting<\/a>. In 2022, two Starbucks in Santa Cruz were the first<\/a> in the state to unionize, with over 300 stores eventually voting to unionize<\/a>. The work of Starbucks employees is inspiring, Rith said, and it has shown the Peet\u2019s Labor Union how to strategize around bargaining, if they make it that far.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen we look at Starbucks \u2014 and we look at what they\u2019re doing and whether it\u2019s working \u2014 you want to think about what\u2019s going to get Peet\u2019s attention and actually take you seriously,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd that\u2019s really going to be the strength of the workers.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rith said she\u2019s concerned about workplace safety and physical health. When the store has only three people on the floor, she finds herself multitasking to meet the demand, leading to wrist and shoulder problems. In March, Rith saw a physical therapist who advised her to take breaks when possible, but with so many duties and pressure to make drinks under three minutes, there\u2019s often no time, she said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis problem could be eliminated if it wasn\u2019t forced upon us to work as quickly as possible,\u201d she said, \u201cand if we were able to actually care about the craft and quality of the drinks that we\u2019re serving.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Workers also want more consistent and flexible scheduling. Ochoa\u2019s haphazard schedule has made him consider trying to pick up more hours at his second job, looking for a third part-time gig or driving for Uber. \u201cOur schedules will change week to week,\u201d Ochoa said. \u201cAnd so we\u2019re only really allowed to plan our lives a week at a time.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the scheduling system changed slightly after they filed their petition to unionize: Now, they get their schedules two to three weeks in advance. Despite some workers getting \u201cas little as five to 10 hours per week\u201d at Ochoa\u2019s store, he said Peet\u2019s has still been hiring new staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peet\u2019s said that it works \u201cas much as possible\u201d with employees\u2019 schedules: \u201cAt some locations, employees may only be available on weekends or in the afternoons and their availability changes with new class schedules, other job commitments, or personal needs. We hire to fill those ever-changing gaps.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the Bay Area, some recent unionizing efforts outside of the coffee industry have slowed down after early momentum. After voting to unionize in 2021, workers from Tartine Bakery<\/a> and Dandelion Chocolate<\/a> still haven\u2019t announced a contract. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Organizers say they haven\u2019t been paying close attention to examples like Tartine and Dandelion, but they\u2019re hopeful they\u2019ll have better luck at the bargaining table if they successfully unionize. Ochoa said people from \u201ca handful\u201d of other Peet\u2019s locations have already reached out to express interest in organizing. At their store, Ochoa and Rith said, colleagues are thrilled to see this happening, with Ochoa estimating that around 90% of employees at the three stores are on board with the union. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Still, Rith is nervous about the impending vote. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think there\u2019s always like a level of anxiety that will come with organizing,\u201d Rith said. \u201cGoing into (the vote), I feel pretty good and excited.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reach Matt Yan: Matt.Yan@sfchronicle.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Matt Yan is the newsroom\u2019s food and wine reporting intern. Originally from Washington, D.C., he is a senior at Northeastern University in Boston and will graduate in December with a combined degree in journalism and English. Yan most recently was a correspondent at the Boston Globe, where he wrote hundreds of breaking news stories about local crime, Taylor Swift, and everything in between. He also was the editor-in-chief of the Huntington News, Northeastern\u2019s independent student paper, and an intern at Edible DC. Yan is thrilled to join The Chronicle and dive headfirst into the Bay Area\u2019s food and wine scene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"San<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\"HEARST\u00a92023 Hearst Communications, Inc.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Matt Yan July 25, 2023 (SFChronicle.com) While working at Peet\u2019s Coffee, Terri McFadden has often felt unsafe, but nothing compares to when a customer threw hot water at him and his manager. He fell and dealt with burns on the side of his face. \u201cIt\u2019s by far the most traumatic… Continue reading → <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[852,764],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27596"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27596"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27596\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27597,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27596\/revisions\/27597"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27596"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27596"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27596"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}