Local Starbucks workers vote to unionize
Richmond Free Press, April 21, 2022
Photo by Regina H. Boone
“Get up, get down, Richmond is a union town!”
Chants, cheers and tears of joy filled the event space of Studio Two Three on Tuesday afternoon as organizers from five Richmond Starbuck stores watched as their workplaces became the first in the state to unionize.
More than 90 Starbucks employees across the five stores voted as part of the union process, which began in late March and now allows them to form local units of Workers United, an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union.
The vote and tally, counted by Cameron Meyers of the National Labor Relations Board and livestreamed from the Baltimore office, was the culmination of months of organizing by store workers to rally support among their fellow employees. Those present were already celebrating when the first store voted in favor of unionizing, and each store that followed was a welcome validation of their hard work to build solidarity and collaboration among their fellow employees.