Arlington Heights Starbucks becomes 12th to unionize in the suburbs

Workers at a Starbucks coffee shop in Arlington Heights voted this week to join a union, becoming the 12th shop to organize in the suburbs in recent years.

Employees at the 115 W. Rand Road location voted 11-3 to join Starbucks Workers United in an election held in the café Tuesday, according to the union and National Labor Relations Board.

All 20 full-time and regular part-time baristas and shift supervisors are set to become part of the bargaining unit, pending certification. Store managers and clerical employees are not included.

“To say the organization of our store is a long time coming is an understatement,” Mary Lazaretti, a shift supervisor of 2⅟₂ years, said in an announcement from the union Thursday. “(We are) ready to be a part of the bigger picture, to be part of a movement, and more importantly: to stand together. Union strong, from Chicagoland!”

The local vote comes as Starbucks and the union are set to return to the bargaining table — now, with a mediator present — over a framework for initial local labor agreements. Talks stalled last year over wages and led to strikes at hundreds of stores over the holidays.

Starbucks officials said discussions “are designed to achieve ratified collective bargaining agreements for represented partners, resolve litigation and ensure a fair process for organizing,” according to a statement on the corporation’s website.

Workers at a Buffalo, New York Starbucks store were the first to unionize in 2021. Since then, the list has grown to some 11,000 baristas at more than 550 company-owned locations nationwide.

The Arlington Heights store becomes part of a dozen with labor representation in the suburbs, joining union shops in Glenview, Des Plaines, Cary, Carpentersville, Elgin, Elmhurst, Oak Brook, Oak Park and three in Evanston. Another dozen are in Chicago, among 32 statewide.

About 5% of Starbucks’ 11,242 company-operated stores are unionized nationwide.