California is steadily raising the minimum, with it set to reach $15 an hour by January 1st of 2022 (at least for large corporations, like Starbucks). Los Angeles County is raising their minimum even faster, with it set to reach $15 by July 1st of this year. It’s expensive to live in Los Angeles County - and they need the wage increase fast. However, it’s even more expensive to live in Orange County and we aren’t due to see $15 until the rest of the state gets it in 2023. The trouble is that even if at a wage of $15 right now, many of us would still be below state definitions of poverty for our county. We need the raise to $15 by 2021, and we need the $17 an hour that will finally put us out of poverty by at least 2023. At $15 an hour and 30 hours a week, an Orange County Starbucks partner that is single earner would currently still be $1,500 dollars below the Extreme Low Income line as defined by the California Department of Housing and Community Development, a line that the agency considers equal to poverty (the majority of successful applications for section 8 housing in California come from people making less than this limit). In 2023, only accounting for inflation, this difference will be even more significant. In 2023 a Orange County Starbucks partner will need to make at least $17 an hour to be just outside the Extreme Low Income limit. Why are we using a single household earner at thirty hours for our numbers? Because this represents the 'worst off' possible newly hired partner. This is a partner trying to support just themselves, and trying to get as many hours as they can in a new store. This is a partner trying to get through college while working. This is a single parent trying their best to pay the bills and take care of their child. It is this petition's stance that Starbucks should guarantee that even our 'worst off' partners are paid enough to be above the state’s official definitions of poverty. In Orange County, we don't have the minimum wage we need, or the path to one. We ask that Starbucks lead the way.

Having higher wages will attract people who are looking to develop into higher positions. Right now we get college students or high school students who don’t plan on staying long-term and don’t take the job seriously. I also feel like it will help employees feel like the work is worth it. We deal with very high end customers who expect expensive service, but baristas feel overworked and under-paid so they don’t have the drive to work at their best or go out of their way for a customer. Higher wages will make a huge difference on the environment of the workplace because they will demonstrate to employees that their work is valued and appreciated. I know the perks that Starbucks offers are amazing and I’m not doubting that, but they just don’t suffice when you can’t afford to live. I’m here to make a difference and to improve the customer experience, employees’ livelihood, and the overall morale of the business.

Making these changes would help cut down on food waste costs and labor costs across the company. And would ensure each store had a consistent and inviting pastry case display.

In my store we throw out about 30 items of food at the end of the day but UK staff are not allowed to take some home without buying it and we are banned from giving it away to homeless shelters etc. In the US, Starbucks has implemented a 'Food Share' program that distributes leftover meals to food banks but what about the hundreds of Starbucks stores in the UK?

To Allow More Freedom Of Dresscode Choice. Also, To Allow Us To Express Ourselves With A Little More Color At Work.

This is important because I have spoken to many partners who feel the same way and haven’t been able to voice their feelings. It is a form of self expression and the rule has prevented many people from wanting working there. In 2019, society has very much advocated for self expression and Starbucks has good values already, but allowing this would further more support that.

We need a fair workweek so that when shifts get cancelled last minute we still have hours we can count on. That’s why we’re calling on some of the wealthiest corporations in our country like Starbucks, Walmart, Amazon and Target to provide disaster relief pay for employees who have had to miss work this week due to the cold. Our bills don’t stop just because it gets cold!

*Added 1/21/19 The author of this petition ended up getting poked by a dirty needle themselves, after two other coworkers were poked in the same cafe, not long after starting this petition. Since then, the author went to local Seattle news crews, and only after their story aired did Starbucks put safe sharps disposals in six cafes in Seattle, but they were only the cafes that already had an L&I complaint and fine about this issue before. The author still has yet to hear directly from anyone at Starbucks Corporate. The author still fully intends on hand-delivering this petition to Starbucks HQ. The author is obnoxiously tenacious like that. Exposure to HIV/AIDS, Hep C, Hep B, etc. is a risk in Seattle where there is a heroin/hep c crisis--and an HIV outbreak in at the same time and in the same area that baristas were getting poked by used drug needles while at work. There is no vaccine for Hep C, the available treatment is not a 100% assured cure, and Starbucks refuses to comment to employees when employees mention this risk. Employees risk getting poked, and DO get poked, even when following "protocol" of using gloves and tongs to dispose of used needles left in bathrooms, tampon disposal boxes, and diaper changing stations. It costs almost two thousand dollars just for one round of after-exposure shots, not including other tests, shots, medications, etc. Employees have to pay out-of-pocket for this before being reimbursed until Starbucks's company insurance kicks in. Many baristas cannot afford that, instead resorting to loans and credit cards. Employees who are pregnant or already immuno-compromised have an added risk if poked by a used needle. Employees also have to then use added protection with their sexual partners/spouses for six months minimum/risk exposing them, too. Starbucks makes various excuses from "it looks bad" to "drug users will just take the boxes off the walls and steal the needles." Employees cannot legally be forced to remove needles, but when they ask to call hazmat, they're told "hazmat cost comes from the individual store budget" (a veiled threat of even less staff coverage on an already short-staffed floor because no money to pay them if it is used for hazmat). Making coffee should not come with this kind of easily detoured risk.

I’ve been a barista at Starbucks for nearly 4 years in multiple states and currently work in Wilsonville, Oregon. My wife is due to give birth to our first baby in less than 2 weeks. For so many soon-to-be fathers, feeling anxious is normal, but I’m even more nervous because we don’t have access to any paid parental leave. In order to help support my wife during her pregnancy, I used up some of my vacation and sick time, which is now running short. Currently, I have a week and a half left of vacation or sick time which I expect to use after our delivery. Our benefits allowed us the family planning financial assistance necessary for infertility treatment, but now the ability to be present during the most crucial stage of my family’s development is in jeopardy. As a single income family with a new infant, we simply cannot afford to take unpaid time off. The current partner benefits system works against expecting parents, something we have unfortunately found out the hard way. The part time disability that my wife and I pay into does not allow any paid time off to care for my wife after birth, because pregnancy is considered as a preexisting condition. As our child is scheduled to arrive during the holiday season, the ability to be a part of the postpartum process is even more worrisome. I made the choice to work at Starbucks after a 17 year long career because I have received great benefits, including health insurance. I’m a partner and a shareholder in the company - but when it comes to paid family leave, it’s as if my contributions and sacrifices to Starbucks don't matter. It is incredibly frustrating to know that new fathers who work in the corporate office receive 12 weeks paid parental leave - time that would make a world of difference for my family. These rights should be offered to every partner, in every retail store, and would impress upon the company an even more supportive and fulfilling workplace. I’m sharing my story because I know that it’s not just me who needs to be able to take paid parental leave - I’ve talked to so many other men at work who are shocked to find out that we don’t receive any paid time to be there when we have children. The time of fathers and husbands to only be financial contributors has come and gone. My desire to be an equal part of the rearing of my children and caretaker seem to be a concept that Starbucks has yet to consider. For relationships like ours, that don’t have assistance from family and friends, we equally rely on each other in times of health and hardships. Currently, Starbucks employees who work in the corporate office receive 12 weeks of paid parental leave, and birthing mothers receive an additional 6 weeks (18 weeks total). For those of us who work in the stores, birthing mothers and adoptive parents receive 6 weeks paid parental leave - but dads are completely left out - we don’t receive any time at all.

More online degree options will give more baristas the opportunity to make a positive change to our lives. While ASU has many great programs, their online course selection is rather limited. They don’t offer degrees in many baristas’ chosen fields (such as Animation, Physics, or Neuroscience) or some of the certifications we need to find employment after completing our education (such as A+, Net+, and Security+ certification for Cybersecurity and Network engineering). By offering more online degree options, Starbucks can unlock the potential of every employee in every geographic location. In addition, more online degree options will make it easier on baristas’ schedules. We will have the flexibility to choose the program we want and the classes that will best fit with our working hours. Starbucks has always had a progressive company culture that encourages employees to achieve their future goals. While Starbucks’ partnership with ASU has opened up doors for many employees, it is time to expand educational offerings so that all employees can pursue their aspirations through education. Here are just some of the other online accredited degree colleges and universities I've found through my own research: Western Governors University Colorado Technical University Colorado State University Gonzaga University Online

Variety in a workplace is always great! Wouldn't you want to have some red, purple, green, or maybe pink in your hair? From my personal Barista experience I have had countless others be let down by the new code not being taken into action since it was passed last summer within the USA. Countless other Barista roles in other companies (Costa, Nero etc.) have allowed unnatural hair for years, so why shouldn't Starbucks? To keep with the changing times this should be a no-brainer for the company to appeal to it's customers and keep its loyal employees happy and be able to show their uniqueness.

Starbucks paper cups exact a huge toll on the global plastic pollution problem -- and the majority of coffee-addicts and baristas still don't know it's happening! I've been a barista for 5 years and sustainability is important to me -- and I bet other partners agree. I'm working with Stand.earth, an environmental organization, to show Starbucks that partners want to see them do more for the environment by using sustainable cups. Starbucks has emerged as the industry leader in caffeinating the world, and therefore has a duty to its customers, as well as past and present partners, to do be more responsible with their trash!