Starbucks Stock Continues to Flail as Baristas Threaten a Union Strike

Starbucks just can’t catch a break… and now its baristas are this close to turning your local store into a caffeine-free wasteland. (Hope you’ve got an emergency stash of instant coffee, because things are heating up.) This whole mess kicked off back in 2021 when baristas collectively declared, “We’re overworked, underpaid, and we’re done pretending to write your name correctly with a smile.” Low wages? Check. Skeleton crews running stores? Double check. And shift schedules that look like they were thrown together by the Krusty Krab? You bet.

As for Starbucks’ handling of unionization? Let’s just say their approach has been anything but subtle. Brian Niccol, the Chipotle savior Starbucks brought on board in September, is now tasked with sprinkling some magic on their crumbling operations. (Because if you can pull a burrito chain out of a salmonella spiral, fixing coffee chaos should be a breeze, right?)

Niccol’s first big move? Telling corporate employees to get their butts back to the office. That decision went over about as well as you can imagine. Now he’s tackling a bigger beast: convincing frontline baristas he’s got their backs while trying to dig Starbucks’ financials out of a pretty gnarly hole.

To prove he’s listening, Starbucks announced a new perk: expanded paid parental leave starting March 2025. Birth parents get 18 weeks, while non-birth parents get 12 weeks. Sounds generous, right? Here’s the fine print… baristas can also expect smaller raises this year, thanks to vague “performance issues”. Let me translate that for you: Sales are down, and somebody’s gotta pay for it (and it’s not going to be the people in the boardroom.) Corporate workers didn’t get off easy either. Their bonuses were sliced down to 60% of target… a solid kick in the wallet for the office crowd who likely weren’t thrilled to be back in fluorescent lighting to begin with.

Meanwhile, Starbucks’ fourth-quarter earnings report landed with a thud. U.S. store sales tumbled 6% year-over-year, dragging total revenue down by 3% to $9.4 billion. For a company built on charging $7 for caffeinated sugar water, that’s a hard reality check. Turns out customers are finally saying, “You know what? Tap water and Costco coffee pods hit the same.” So, what’s Niccol’s grand vision for saving Starbucks? Drumroll, please: the “Back to Starbucks” initiative… a nostalgia trip back to the good ol’ days when baristas misspelled your name for free and you didn’t feel like you were waiting in a TSA line. The plan focuses on three pillars: 

#1. Simplifying the menu (goodbye, 46-step TikTok drink orders)

#2. Getting wait times under four minutes (a near miracle at busy locations)

#3. Bringing back ceramic mugs for dine-in customers (must be for the boomers).

But surprisingly enough, baristas aren’t buying it. Starbucks Workers United, the union representing thousands of Starbucks employees, just voted 98% in favor of a strike. Their gripe? Starbucks hasn’t coughed up a real economic offer. And that new parental leave policy? The union is already taking credit for pushing it through in the first place. Where does all this leave Starbucks? With frustrated employees, increasingly grumpy customers, shrinking sales, and a potential strike looming like an over-brewed pot of drip coffee. Not exactly the brand image they’ve spent decades roasting to perfection. And if you thought waiting 10 minutes for your latte was bad, just wait until Karen’s meltdown in line when there’s nobody left to make her Skinny Vanilla Latte.

Stockholders aren’t exactly flying around with confidence either. The stock is down 5% in just the last 5 days. And over the past year, it’s eked out a measly 1.22% gain (a glaring underperformance compared to the S&P 500’s eye-popping 28.71% rise). Analysts aren’t convinced Niccol’s turnaround plan will justify the costs, with some even slapping the stock with a “sell” rating.

So here we are: A company that once symbolized caffeinated optimism now scrambling to patch up its fraying business… with duct tape. Brian Niccol may have been the hero Chipotle needed, but saving Starbucks? That might take a miracle (especially when you’ve got Dutch Bros ready to take over the world with their better tasting and cheaper coffee).

P.S. While we all watch Starbuck's slow demise…

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Stock.News has positions in Starbucks.