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Unionized Starbucks workers at the 305 E. Mitchell Hammock Road store in Oviedo join national strike (Dec. 11, 2025) Credit: Clay Blastic\/Starbucks Workers United<\/p>\nUnionized Starbucks workers at the 305 E. Mitchell Hammock Road store in Oviedo join national strike (Dec. 11, 2025) Credit: Clay Blastic\/Starbucks Workers United<\/p>\n
After voting overwhelmingly to go on strike if needed to secure a fair union contract, baristas at one of Central Florida\u2019s only unionized Starbucks locations in Oviedo have joined a national strike that began last month<\/a>, as part of a pressure campaign to get Starbucks to agree to their demands.<\/p>\n Workers at other stores unionized with Starbucks Workers United have gradually joined the strike, leveraging an escalation strategy used by the United Auto Workers union during their \u201cStand Up\u201d strike<\/a> against automakers Ford, General Motors and Stellantis in 2023.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we get a good contract, that sets a standard that other stores can look at and go, \u2018This is better than what the store \u2014 this company that says it\u2019s progressive \u2014 is offering,\u2019\u201d said Clay Blastic, a local Starbucks barista of more than 10 years.\u00a0 Blastic, a union leader at his store, told Orlando Weekly that they\u2019re fighting for a union contract with Starbucks that not only lifts up the wages and working conditions of unionized baristas, but sets higher standards for others, too. <\/p>\n \u201cA rising tide lifts all boats, as they say,\u201d he said. Starbucks workers at the 305 E. Mitchell Hammock Road location in Oviedo joined the strike early Thursday morning, which has now spread across 180 locations in 34 cities, including two unionized Starbucks locations in West Palm Beach \u2014 the first in Florida to join the strike last week \u2014 and Clearwater. Baristas at the Oviedo location first voted to unionize<\/a> in 2022. They were joined Thursday on the picket line by allies with labor union UNITE HERE and Central Florida Jobs With Justice.<\/p>\n Unlike one-day strikes<\/a> organized by Starbucks baristas in the past \u2014 a rarity in an industry where so few workers are actually unionized<\/a> \u2014 this strike is an open-ended strike, meaning the end date for their work stoppage is yet to be determined.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cBaristas like me shouldn\u2019t be worrying about making rent or whether we\u2019ll qualify for healthcare coverage, especially in the holiday season,\u201d Zarian Antonio Pouncy, a barista of 12 years from Las Vegas, said in a statement from his union. \u201cWe need Starbucks to end the illegal union busting, and we need a fair contract with fair pay, reliable hours, and on-the-job protections. Until then, the message from baristas and our allies across the U.S. and beyond is clear: No Contract, No Coffee!\u201d<\/p>\n Workers are asking for customers to boycott of all Starbucks locations and products for the duration of the strike<\/p>\n Starbucks, despite is progressive branding, has been accused<\/a> of hundreds of labor law violations since 2021, when baristas in Buffalo, New York, unionized the first corporate-owned location in the United States. Allegations range from Starbucks illegally firing workers for their union activity to cutting the hours of and otherwise retaliating against baristas who are organizing at their store.<\/p>\n Earlier this month, Starbucks also reached a $38 million settlement<\/a> with New York City\u2019s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, according to The City NYC, over Starbucks \u201carbitrarily\u201d cutting workers\u2019 hours, in violation of the city\u2019s \u201cfair workweek\u201d law. Fair workweek laws, which guarantee predictability in workers\u2019 schedules, were banned by Florida lawmakers<\/a> through legislation approved by Gov. Ron DeSantis last year.<\/p>\n Blastic, the local barista, said that meeting baristas\u2019 economic demands in a union contract \u2014 the primary sticking point in negotiations \u2014 would cost Starbucks less than just one average day of sales. Other union leaders have argued the same<\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s just a question of priorities,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Starbucks, for instance, found the money to gift its new CEO Brian Niccol, the former head of burrito chain Chipotle, a nearly $100 million compensation package<\/a> last year. According to an annual report from the AFL-CIO, Niccol made 6,666 times<\/a> the pay of the average Starbucks barista in 2024.<\/p>\n \u201cThey call us \u2018partners,\u2019 but I\u2019d like to see them put their money where their mouth is when it comes to that,\u201d Blastic said. While critics might argue that barista jobs are meant to be entry-level jobs for younger workers, Blastic argued, \u201cAll jobs deserve dignity.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe used to see a lot more older people that were able to make a living with Starbucks, and that has changed over the years,\u201d he said. The union last year<\/a> sought a $20 minimum wage in their contract with Starbucks, plus annual 5 percent raises and cost-of-living adjustments. Starbucks, instead, offered a contract delivering no immediate pay raises \u2014 a deal soundly rejected by union baristas earlier this year.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a college store,\u201d Blastic admitted of his location, referring to the fact that they see frequent turnover from students at the University of Central Florida who are looking for a job outside of their studies. Even if this is a student\u2019s first job, he said, \u201cThey still deserve the basic dignity of being able to support themselves off the job and respect from their management and protections in the workplace.\u201d<\/p>\n According to Starbucks Workers United, nearly 4,000 unionized Starbucks workers are now on strike, as of Thursday morning, as part of the union\u2019s latest expansion of the work stoppage. Workers are asking customers and their communities to boycott Starbucks for as long as they\u2019re on strike \u2014 meaning no gift cards, no coffee, no holiday merch.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are plenty of wonderful local coffee shops in the area, in Oviedo, that would love their business,\u201d said Blastic. \u201cBut it\u2019s time for the customers as well to say \u2026 \u2018if there\u2019s going to be no contract, there\u2019s going to be no coffee.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Starbucks spokesperson Jaci Anderson, in response to the strike, told Orlando Weekly in a statement that 99 percent of their 17,000 U.S. locations are still open and welcoming customers, \u201cincluding many the union publicly stated would strike but never closed or have since reopened.\u201d<\/p>\n In response to the union\u2019s economic demands, Anderson said that pay and benefits for Starbucks jobs average $30 per hour for hourly positions. \u201cRegardless of the union\u2019s plans, we do not anticipate any meaningful disruption,\u201d she said. \u201cWhen the union is ready to return to the bargaining table, we\u2019re ready to talk.\u201d<\/p>\n Politicians like U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, New York mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, and U.S. Congressman Maxwell Frost (a former Starbucks barista) have shared support for the striking Starbucks workers \u2014 with the former two even joining a picket line with workers<\/a> up in Brooklyn.<\/p>\n \u201cRight now, Starbucks workers are on strike,\u201d Congressman Frost, a Democrat from Orlando, shared in a Nov. 25 social media reel<\/a>. \u201cAs a former Starbucks barista myself, I\u2019m proud of @sbworkersunited for organizing nationwide. They need our support and solidarity.\u201d<\/p>\n If you\u2019re interested in showing your support for union baristas on strike, you can find a map of Starbucks Workers United public picket lines at NoContractNoCoffee.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n Starbucks workers in Oviedo have also set up a strike fund<\/a> through GoFundMe, to help cover workers\u2019 lost income while they\u2019re on strike.<\/p>\n Proceeds from merch on the union\u2019s website, including shirts with messages like \u201cBe Gay and Organize<\/a>\u201d and \u201cTrans Rights Are Labor Rights<\/a>,\u201d are also currently going toward workers\u2019 strike funds.<\/p>\n Subscribe to Orlando Weekly newsletters.<\/a><\/p>\n Follow us:\u00a0Apple News<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Google News<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0NewsBreak<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Reddit<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Instagram<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Facebook\u00a0<\/a>|\u00a0Bluesky<\/a>\u00a0| Or sign up for our\u00a0RSS Feed<\/a><\/p>\n Related Stories<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\tWhile some progress has been made in contract talks with Starbucks, the union is threatening a potential strike if they don\u2019t reach a deal that workers approve.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/IMG_9950.jpeg\")
Starbucks workers in Oviedo join national strike (Dec. 11, 2025) Credit: Clay Blastic\/Starbucks Workers United<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/IMG_9951.jpeg\")
Starbucks workers in Oviedo join national strike (Dec. 11, 2025) Credit: Clay Blastic\/Starbucks Workers United<\/p>\n
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