Starbucks at Texas Medical Center becomes 3rd in unionization in Houston

Another group of Houston-based Starbucks employees voted to unionize last week, boosting the labor movement that has grown in the region, state and country.

According to a tweet from the Houston branch of Starbucks Workers United, Starbucks workers at 6400 Fannin St. Texas Medical Center voted 8–2 to form a union last Thursday saying “that’s not all.” Starbucks in the Montrose area at 2801 S. Shepherd Dr. became the first in Houston to form a union last September, followed by a store at 30130 Rock Creek Dr. in Kingwood.

“It won’t end. These people are on a roll,” said Linda Morales, Texas Gulf Coast Organizational Coordinator for the Federation of Labor. “We will be there to support every (unionist) effort in every possible way. Starbucks needs to come to an agreement and stop messing around.”

HOUSTON WE HAVE ANOTHER UNION RELATED STORE Fannin store just won union election 8-2!!!!!! Along with our friends in Kingwood, there are now 3 unionized Starbucks in the Houston area. (plus more to come)

— SBWU Houston (@SBWU_Houston) February 16, 2023

Starbucks Workers United, the Seattle coffee chain’s nationwide collective, says on its website that more than 275 stores have unionized since the Buffalo, New York store became the first in late 2021. The movement for better pay, better hours, better benefits, and better working conditions includes more than a dozen Starbucks stores in Texas.

Starbucks did not immediately respond to an email on Monday asking for comment. So is Starbucks Workers United.

Morales said the Texas Gulf Coast Labor Federation was not directly involved, but supported workers’ efforts to organize and bargain collectively, as federal law allows. In general, she said, forming a union can be difficult, in part because companies can retaliate against employees who try to organize, including through layoffs.

Morales said local Starbucks workers who have chosen to unionize are setting an example for other workers in a number of other industries, potentially influencing workforce standards for generations to come.

“It’s great because young people are doing it,” Morales said. “This is done at the grassroots level. They want to have a say in their workplace… It says something about youth and something about the future of unions in Texas.”