pBy LAUREN SHEPHERD, Associated Press /p p06.03.09/p pNEW YORK -- The National Labor Relations Board said Wednesday it approved a settlement with Starbucks Corp. that explicitly states Minneapolis-area baristas can discuss union issues while on the job./p pAccording to the settlement, Starbucks will post a notice in stores telling baristas the company will not remove union postings and will not prohibit union supporters from discussing the union while at work./p pThe settlement follows allegations that Starbucks' policy on posting materials and soliciting employees was being enforced differently in certain stores and by certain store managers./p !-- rdf:RDF xmlns:rdf=http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns# xmlns:dc=http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/ xmlns:trackback=http://madskills.com/public/xml/rss/module/trackback/ rdf:Description rdf:about=http://www.starbucksunion.org/node/2132 dc:identifier=http://www.starbucksunion.org/node/2132 dc:title=NLRB approves Starbucks Minneapolis settlement [AP] trackback:ping=http://www.starbucksunion.org/trackback/2132 / /rdf:RDF --

pem Mounting Rights Violations Fan the Flames of Escalating Public Outcry/em/p pIWW Starbucks Workers Union/p pJune 1, 2009/p pMinneapolis, MN– The Starbucks Coffee Co. settled a complaint today from the National Labor Relations Board over charges of violating workers’ rights --- the sixth such settlement in three years for the ailing coffee giant. The case comes as a new website (a href=http://www.StopStarbucks.comStopStarbucks.com/a) and viral video calling on CEO Howard Schultz to respect workers’ right to join a labor union spread like wildfire across the Internet. The new media initiative, from Robert Greenwald’s “Brave New Films”, has already been viewed over 60,000 times with a related petition garnering almost 15,000 signatures./p p“This settlement proves that Starbucks executives are not above the law and cannot block hard working baristas from making positive change,” said Angel Gardner, a barista and member of the Starbucks Workers Union in the Twin Cities. “How can Starbucks claim that it maintains a positive work environment when one labor case after another exposes its lack of respect for employees?”/p !-- rdf:RDF xmlns:rdf=http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns# xmlns:dc=http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/ xmlns:trackback=http://madskills.com/public/xml/rss/module/trackback/ rdf:Description rdf:about=http://www.starbucksunion.org/node/2130 dc:identifier=http://www.starbucksunion.org/node/2130 dc:title=Faced with Growing Uproar, Starbucks Settles Sixth Labor Complaint trackback:ping=http://www.starbucksunion.org/trackback/2130 / /rdf:RDF --

object height=340 width=560param name=movie value=http://www.youtube.com/v/L58EKo9XYiEamp;hl=enamp;fs=1 /param name=allowFullScreen value=true /param name=allowscriptaccess value=always /embed height=340 width=560 src=http://www.youtube.com/v/L58EKo9XYiEamp;hl=enamp;fs=1 type=application/x-shockwave-flash allowscriptaccess=always allowfullscreen=true //embed/object br /br / a href=http://stopstarbucks.comWatch the video and sign the memo to Howard Schultz to insist he respect the right of Starbucks workers to join a union/a !-- rdf:RDF xmlns:rdf=http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns# xmlns:dc=http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/ xmlns:trackback=http://madskills.com/public/xml/rss/module/trackback/ rdf:Description rdf:about=http://www.starbucksunion.org/node/2123 dc:identifier=http://www.starbucksunion.org/node/2123 dc:title=What Do Starbucks and Wal-Mart Have in Common? [Brave New Films] trackback:ping=http://www.starbucksunion.org/trackback/2123 / /rdf:RDF --

pMay 17, 2009 marks five years since baristas at a Starbucks in New York City announced their membership in the Industrial Workers of the World and launched a campaign open to employees throughout the company. A worker-led organizing effort with the legendary IWW at the world's largest coffee chain could have been a flash in the pan– brilliant and inspiring, but brief. But a fire was lit and a movement began. The idea that Starbucks workers could organize themselves and speak in their own voice, independent of company executives and union bureaucrats, could not be restrained./p pThe bosses did their best to defeat us, to bury any indication of our existence under a heap of lies and retaliatory firings. They tried to stamp us out, even as the campaign for secure jobs and a living wage burst from New York into Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota and beyond./p pWhile Starbucks used the economic crisis as a pretext for an all-out assault on our already meager standard of living, our struggle gained momentum this year amidst a stark decline of the company's brand and widespread store closures. Baristas around the country and around the world made the decision to organize and fight back against severe cuts in work hours, chronic under staffing, and a new quot;Optimal Schedulingquot; program which forces many workers to be available to Starbucks for over 80 hours a week without being guaranteed a single work hour. /p pThis journey has been full of set-backs and tests of will. Progress has been made yet much remains to be done. But one thing is certain: our voice for dignity is firmly planted and our union’s future is bright./p pThe biggest battles remain ahead, but every day our ranks deepen. We are confident in our solidarity and could not be more proud to be associated with our fellow workers across the IWW and like-minded unionists around the world. This year, courageous baristas in Chile became the first Starbucks workers in Latin America to raise a union banner./p pThe corporate-controlled economic, social, and political model has been exposed everywhere as a failure for working families. And everyday workers are bolder and more assertive in the fight against injustice and exploitation. The notion that democracy has no place at work has been exposed as a lie./p pTo every worker who loves liberty: this is our time!/p pTogether we organize. Together we struggle. Together we win!/p pa href=http://www.StarbucksUnion.orgwww.StarbucksUnion.org/a/p pa href=http://www.iww.orgwww.iww.org/a/p !-- rdf:RDF xmlns:rdf=http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns# xmlns:dc=http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/ xmlns:trackback=http://madskills.com/public/xml/rss/module/trackback/ rdf:Description rdf:about=http://www.starbucksunion.org/node/2122 dc:identifier=http://www.starbucksunion.org/node/2122 dc:title=Statement of the Starbucks Workers Union on its Fifth Anniversary trackback:ping=http://www.starbucksunion.org/trackback/2122 / /rdf:RDF --