Starbucks and the union organizing its workers sued each other on Wednesday in a standoff sparked by social media posts regarding the Israel-Hamas war.
Starbucks sued Workers United in federal court in Iowa on Wednesday, saying pro-Palestinian social media posts from the union’s account early in the Israel-Hamas war angered hundreds of customers and damaged its reputation.
Starbucks is suing for trademark infringement, demanding that Workers United stop using the name “Starbucks Workers United” for the group that organizes the coffee company’s workers.
Starbucks also wants the group to stop using the round green logo that resembles the Starbucks logo.
Workers United responded with its own filing, asking a federal court in Pennsylvania to rule that it can continue to use the Starbucks name and similar logo.
Workers United also said Starbucks defamed the union by implying that it supports violence and terrorism.
On Oct. 9, two days after Hamas militants rampaged through communities in southern Israel, Starbucks Workers United posted “Solidarity with Palestine!” at X, formerly known as Twitter.
Workers United — an affiliate of the Philadelphia-based Service Employees International Union — said in its lawsuit that workers tweeted without union leaders’ permission.
The post ran for about 40 minutes before being deleted.
Workers United in a countersuit says Starbucks defamed the union by implying that it supports violence and terrorism.AP Starbucks is suing for trademark infringement, demanding Workers United stop using the name “Starbucks Workers United.”Shutterstock
But posts and retweets from the local Starbucks Workers United branch supporting the Palestinians and condemning Israel were still visible on X Wednesday.
Seattle-based Starbucks filed its suit in the US District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, noting that the Iowa City Starbucks Workers United were among those sending pro-Palestinian messages.
In a letter sent to Workers United on October 13, Starbucks demanded that the union stop using a similar name and logo.
In its response, Workers United said the Starbucks Workers United page on X clearly identifies it as a union.
Starbucks Workers United tweeted “Solidarity with Palestine!” after Hamas ambushed Israel on Saturday, sparking calls to “boycott Starbucks.”Twitter/Starbucks Workers United
“Starbucks is seeking to exploit the ongoing tragedy in the Middle East to increase the company’s anti-union campaign,” Workers United President Lynne Fox wrote in a letter to Starbucks.
In its lawsuit, Workers United noted that labor unions often use the names of the workers’ companies they represent, including the Amazon Labor Union and the National Football League Players Association.
Starbucks said it received more than 1,000 complaints about the union’s position.
The Seattle-based coffee giant said employees had to deal with hostile customers and receive threatening phone calls.
Vandals painted Stars of David and swastikas on Rhode Island store windows.
Several lawmakers, including Republican Senator Rick Scott of Florida, called for a boycott of Starbucks.
“If you go to Starbucks, you support the murder of Jews,” Rep. Randy Fine of Florida, a Republican, tweeted on Oct. 11.
Starbucks’ official statement on the war has expressed sympathy for the innocent victims of Israel and Gaza.
“Starbucks strongly condemns acts of hate, violence and terrorism,” Starbucks Executive Vice President Sara Kelly wrote in a letter to employees last week.
Workers United has not released its own statement.
But its parent, SEIU, said Tuesday that it has many members with families on both sides of the conflict and believes “all Israelis and Palestinians deserve security, freedom from violence, and the opportunity to thrive.”
Starbucks Workers United has been operating under that name since August 2021, months before it unionized its first Starbucks store in Buffalo, New York. Since then, at least 366 US Starbucks have voted to unionize.
The campaign helped start a wave of labor protests by Amazon workers, Hollywood writers and actors and auto workers.
But Starbucks does not support unions and has yet to reach a labor agreement at any of its unionized stores.
The process has become contentious, with workers organizing various strikes.
Federal district judges and administrative judges with the National Labor Relations Board have issued 38 decisions finding unfair labor practices by Starbucks, the NLRB said, including suspending negotiations and withholding benefits from unionized workers.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
