"Calgary Starbucks workers become first in Alberta to unionise," 14 Jul 2022

Starbucks workers based in Calgary have become the first employees of the coffeehouse company to unionise in Alberta, joining a wave of employees in North America who have also opted to join a union.

... With this win, 32 Starbucks workers joined the United Steelworkers union (USW), which also represents some Starbucks workers based in Victoria, Surrey, and Langley in British Columbia.

... Chey Watson, a barista from the Millrise store, said that having a "seat at the table" helps them provide the best for customers.

"We want to provide the best for our customers. Having a seat at the table lets our frontline experiences be included in corporate decisions. We have valuable input that can improve our workplace and Starbucks' reach," said Watson in a statement.

... Starbucks, in a statement, said that they respect their employees' right to unionise, however, it remains firm on its stance that they are better partners without unions.

"From the beginning, we've been clear in our belief that we are better together as partners, without a union between us at Starbucks, and that conviction has not changed," a spokesperson from Starbucks told CTV News. "We continue to respect our partners' (employees') right to organise. We will respect the process and will bargain in good faith guided by our principles. We hope that the union does the same."