A Starbucks barista's letter to customers

A Starbucks barista writes: "Starbucks is in trouble, and its not just the economy. I think they are making the wrong decisions, they are burning out their best people while letting them know that they are expendable. This is my letter to customers as a Starbucks barista of over 3 years." [Note: I've trimmed it a bit -- Starbucks Gossip webmaster]

Starbucks has been my home now for a number of years. It has been a fantastic place to work for, one I wouldn't hesitate to enthusiastically recommend to anyone. I can't do that anymore. ... Here's the thing, we are as busy as ever. Yet the powers that be have told us we have to cut labor, be more efficient, sales are down. Less experienced baristas are having their hours cut to near or below the level of even making them worth having around. That puts more weight on the experienced baristas. But they are cutting the margins on the experienced baristas and shift supervisors as well. And the weight on the managers is intense by this point. Basically without saying it, they are telling us to work off the clock.

...The only reason I don't leave is because who can pay me what Starbucks does and give me time to go to school, with this economy? For others the question is who else can provide me with the same great insurance that Starbucks provides? This may sound like whining to those who don't have a job at all, but you have to put it in context. If we are only staying because we can't get by the same somewhere else, then how are we supposed to be enthusiastic about our service to Starbucks? These are the baristas who know your kid has his big soccer game today, know that you like an extra shot of espresso Monday morning, and can have your order finished without you have to call it out. I understand that they are hoping we take up the slack so that they won't have to lay anyone off. But the reason sales are down is not the lack of coffee selling, it's the products in the store that aren't selling. All those glorious coffee machines and French presses and chocolates and books and ornaments.

If they want to cut labor why not close an hour earlier on a store by store basis. If you have only three customers in the last hour with two baristas closing, the cost of the store being open and the two baristas working outweigh a few mochas. ... I know everyone is forced to do more with less right now, and I know a good, quick short term fix is to cut labor. But cutting labor will hurt Starbucks bottom line in the long run, it will just be harder to calculate.

This isn't a letter asking for pity from the customers. This is a letter to explain to the customers why the waits are longer, the baristas look shell-shocked, and the faces are changing at your local store. The Experience isn't the same anymore.

Comments

[ElephantInTheRoom]

OK so why is no one talking about the GIANT elephant in the room?

Leadership?

I guess sending 10,000 people for a (minimum) 40 hour non coverage workweek EACH might have been a little short sighted in the tanking economy... (to think nothing of travel and hotel costs, etc.)

That money should have been invested DIRECTLY back into the company and maybe we wouldn't HAVE to be making such huge sacrifices now.

They didn't want to "let us down" after the Costa Rica trip fell through.

Please... we're all adults. And given a choice, I'm confident the majority would have preferred to stay home rather than face the hell we're living now.

Also, can we just admit that Vivanno tanked and get rid of it already?

Nothing slows down the flow of a store down more than the one person that comes in and orders that "smoothie" thing.

Back to Basics and Onward!

[Shift Supervisor]

Agreed

It is ridiculous

And they wonder why Barista's gave low scores to interactions with management outside the store level

[blondi]

The company plans to spend at least 400 million by cutting labor for the entire 2009 Fiscal year. Granted, they do give us great perks and excellent benefits(if you get the hours for them anymore), but I would rather eat and pay my rent than live in the street with my free bag of coffee. I understand the business and economic side of things, but perhaps there are other places to cut costs company wide rather than raping the baristas that ARE the face of Starbucks. One comment noted the 25 million dollar conference that apparently did not prepare any of the management for the cuts to come. Another poster noted all the fancy machines, presses and (ugly) cups that don't sell. What about the cost of those RED aprons, Holiday tshirts, and ridiculous store decorations pushed by corporate? Perhaps Howard could chip in his cut for a year (that would be if the ENTIRE company was sacrificing).
Of course its much easier to tell the baristas that they don't work hard enough. Because Saturday afternoon at Christmas time with two baristas (for at least 5 hours) and a line out the door is a walk in the park. Starbucks environment and customer service will suffer dramatically. There will be no opportunity to make (remake) mixes that are integral parts of drinks, clean the cafe table and for here servewear, replenish the pastry case, or restock milks and cups, not to mention "connecting" with the customers and make conversation (to help them over look that I had no mix to make their frappuchino after they waited 10 minutes in line). So by "saving" 400 million, maybe we can close 1200 stores next year.

[theSam!!]

wow,

and here I am at almost 4 months, heading off to theSafeWayStore where I'm employed and I love being a Barista.

Since the new Holiday merchandise hit the Display items in our "footprint" area, I've been consulting thePromotions Book binder and reading from theTagLines and the product descriptors as part of theVoyCalls over theSafeWays store PA system, I love it.

Awhile back I walked 6+ miles through Anchorage, both ways, for work at the Intl airport, and patrolled the ParkingRamps and got bitched at or totally ignored by the airport police for doing my (their) security job, but I loved being there for the travelers. I did this 9 months.

And awhile back, I walked two miles 6 or 7 days a week to wash dishes for 10hrs for a nationwide Steakhouse chain that paid less than $6hr and I loved that job too, cos the kids I worked with were great and the Roaches downstairs were quite friendly.

It's tough everywhere, even up here in AK. And my grocer store kiosk where I presently work as a StarbucksBarista, did receive a "Transfer" from Seattle,

well, after working steady for a month she's a no show for her work shift, and I get overTime all this week and work off the clock covering her shifts and cleaning and restocking anyway,

sure we do these things because of some sense of duty to self or for others, but yes, patience and fortitude wears thin eventually.

Just keep being nice and friendly to your Customers, the people, when they step up to OrderYou!! in getting their mochas and....

yes!! LOL.
That stupid Vivanno "smoothie thingie".

It's EXACTLY what "mrsNordstrom" ordered from me yesterday.

She was happy to see me "secure" my CashRegister and happy to see me paraTroopShuffle through the grocerStore shopping crowd for her 2 bananas for her BananaChocolate & protein.

as, the previous shiftBaristaGirl didn't get a replenish on bananas for "MY shift".

I made those banana chocolates and sent mrs Nordstrum and her Sears daughter on their merry way ALL happy.

and that brings to mind, at least for me, Yes. Even the orders we get from our UpperManagers tell us to DayDot & Time everything,

every gallon of opened milk, every dispenser of made Whip (we make our own and power them with co2) and every coffee Ern!! has a fricken dayDateDot and time of expiration on it,

my coffeeErn timers keep beeping at me every 30mins, theRest of theGirls just refresh "their" coffee on shift while I remake mine fresh,

and we have LobbySlides to do, and cups to fetch, and milk to restock,

and since our Kiosk is right next to theEntry sliding doors of the grocerChain store,

we also have to help watch for theft, such as purseSnatchers, FoodRunners Who don't pay and other shopLifters,

We have Management orders to fulfill and we Baristas end up leaving something undone that, even almost 4 months ago we were getting done.

It's hard everywhere these days and in every profession.

Just be glad you're working. And when times get better, you can help make things the way they used to be in this great company.

It seems that the hard headed, dedicated souls of us who serve (in any capacity in theFood & Beverage industry) will always be around

while the young ones gifted with speed, dexterity, loads of multiTasked-ness and a Model's looks & charm will desert you one day.

Great posts, good replys.
I'm learning alot about theGreenApron.

always,
theSam!!
SLFlyinghorse
a licensedStore StarbucksBarista!!

anchorage, alaska

[Dave]

I returned to Starbucks after a two year hiatus and can just say this...its not the same place anymore. I understand the economy is bad and things arent't good for the company. All I can say is that in our store we've basically been told that three of us are getting fired and now we're pitted against each other in a competiton to see who the best baristas are. I understand why they are doing it, but if you seriously think for the amount of money we get paid and the amount of stress we're under that this is worth it, you have major problems. I'm not just thankful to have a job. That's not good enough. I really loved working at Starbucks my first time around. I was thouroughly surprised at how well managed my store was and how well I was treated. And now, I'm basically fighting for my job against some of my best friends. This just isnt' what the place used to be about, and its a crappy place to work these days. I expect better from the company, and I expect better for my own life. Bad economy or not, I'm lookin elsewhere also.

[tallsizebearista17]

Dear Uncle Howard,

Hey there. I’ve had some ideas brewing and thought you might want to have a one-on-one and connect over coffee.

We all recognize that profitability is essential to our future success. The market is floundering, everyone is downsizing, and tough decisions have to be made. We have such a great reputation in our communities- we couldn’t possibly risk a PR disaster surrounding massive cutbacks and layoffs. Instead, why don’t we quietly flush out our employees by making their jobs either completely unbearable or completely unnecessary? They’ll eventually walk away, and we won’t have to deal with the hassle of severance packages, unemployment or negative media attention.

How do we cut ties with this excess of partners who believe in this company wholeheartedly and seem to think this is a great place to work? Let’s start by cutting labor to the point where the wonderful health benefits package we are so generously offered isn’t even attainable since we no longer make enough hours to merit it. I know how we can reward the partners who have proven themselves and put in the time and effort to become shift supervisors. Let’s give them fewer hours than the part-time baristas so we can save a few pennies on the payroll. It doesn’t matter if this is their livelihood and they have bills to pay and families to support, or if they’re the most seasoned and effective partners who might actually stand a chance at handling a rush while severely understaffed. They’ll have more time to get their resumes and job applications together. We’ve trained these people so well and given them such legendary customer service skills- it would be selfish to hoard them all for ourselves. Can’t you see the headlines? “Starbucks generously donates 30,000 hard-working employees to the U.S. workforce.” Talk about contributing positively to our communities!

What about those pesky assistant store managers? They’re just glorified and overpaid shift supervisors anyway. I’ll bet if we tell them that overtime is strictly forbidden but give them more tasks to complete than there are minutes in the day, they'll just work off the clock out of fear of being reprimanded about time management. I know time worked equals time paid and all, but let’s not nitpick. They’ll surely complete that RMT book in a timely manner when they’re scheduled as coverage all the time and barely have a minute to even speak to the store manager much less ask for guidance or feedback. They’ll eventually get fed up and leave. Now the top performing shift supervisors can pick up the slack and do all of that extra work without getting paid more for it! Brilliant!

Maybe those overpaid store managers can get out of that back room and start pulling their weight! Let’s give them completely outrageous and unattainable goals, with no staffing to even attempt to reach them and no guidance on how to execute these plans. I’ve seen so many of those fools work way past the 40 hour point as it is…they surely won’t mind putting in 50 or 60 hours without getting paid any extra. Let’s warn them that their ecosure audits and health inspections must be perfect, but we’ll take away all of their non coverage time so they can’t even schedule an occasional deep cleaning shift.

It's not like they need non coverage hours for all those little things like sitting down to make a schedule, processing payroll, scheduling a meeting to roll out new policies, or writing reviews or development plans. I’m sure they can manage to run the floor and the store effectively and still have plenty of free time to schedule one-on-ones with all the partners, do the deposit, perform regular till audits, connect with the customers, coach, develop, and performance manage the partners, all the while expediting the line and making sure everything is fully stocked and immaculately clean. And of course they’ll have no problem stepping off the floor to entertain a DM who may swoop down at any moment with a list of “opportunities” and an utter lack of empathy.

Let’s “separate” some good district managers and store managers who embody our mission statement and guiding principles, earn our respect through working side by side with us on the bar when a rush comes during a visit, offer extensive coffee knowledge and a sense of the company’s history, and exhibit the people skills needed to make the partners and customers feel important and appreciated.

Paying tenured management, or human beings even, is way too expensive. Let’s hire robots that are manufactured “externally.” Don’t bother programming them on how to expedite a line or make a schedule. As long as they can compute and interpret numbers, it’s ok if they can’t form the words to express or explain them and lack the patience or capacity to even try. They can remind us that our every move is being watched, yet never seem to be around when we need them. They can spout out unreachable demands without expressing the knowledge, compassion, or desire to offer any insight into just how these goals might be met. They can strictly enforce every cash management, dress code, and time and attendance policy, yet overlook those tiny little details like “respect and dignity”....“honesty and integrity”….and “creating enthusiastically satisfied customers.”

Uncle Howard, remember when I strolled into that open house five years ago looking for good health coverage and a less stressful work environment where I could pay off my student loans while I was “between jobs?” I kept saying I’d leave once something better came along, yet nothing ever seemed to. I genuinely liked my job. I genuinely liked my co-workers- or as I learned to call them, partners. I could have sworn there was a time when making people smile was more important than snatching up their money. When we used to say “we’re not in the coffee business serving people- we’re in the people business serving coffee.” When I could say or hear the word “partner” and truly feel like it meant something.

This company created its own language. The customers know “tall, grande, and venti,” but the partners know that asking for help is called “reaching out,” problems are called “opportunities,” and not knowing what the hell is going on and taking whatever is thrown at us is called “dealing with ambiguity.”

Starbucks once put so much emphasis on words…on changing our vocabulary, on communicating and connecting, on sharing our thoughts, on eliciting feedback. Now, it seems, we have shifted our focus to numbers. The words are muffled by an overcrowded café and the grunts and sighs of overworked baristas, but the numbers are loud and clear: “-3% variance”…“2% non coverage”…“110% QASA”… “increase sales by 50%”… “0 overtime”…upsell, comp, cut, minimize, maximize…at the end of the day all that matters is the bottom line.

The partners are struggling to deliver the perfect, handcrafted beverage for their customers, maintain speed of service, keep the store clean, make backup product for the upcoming shift, restock supplies, and still keep smiling - being sure to connect with each and every customer who walks through the door. All of this while wondering if we’ll still have our jobs in a week or a month.

We can no longer work to the standard we have come to hold ourselves to- that our customers deserve for continuing to cough up their hard-earned cash each and every day. The stores are going to be filthy. The lines will be unbearable. The friendly connections our regulars used to start their day with will be but a memory. And sooner or later, those familiar faces who started countless people’s every morning with a smile and some beautiful foam for the past four or 10 years will begin to fade away. The customers will fade away too when they start realizing that everything that made a cup of Starbucks coffee worth its price tag has been thrown out the window.

Uncle Howard, I’ve noticed lots of opportunities in the decision making of our leadership team. I try to keep my composure in dealing with all this ambiguity, but frankly, I don’t know how to surprise and delight my enthusiastically satisfied customers and provide a great work environment while treating my partners with respect and dignity when I barely have enough time to breathe much less converse with a partner or customer or do a lobby slide. When some of my most experienced and dedicated partners who have worked so hard and so passionately for so many years- who lived our guiding principles and were proud to work for a company that meant something- are now watching everything they helped build fall apart, hoping they’ll get enough hours to pay their rent or tuition, struggling to keep pace with a never-ending line and no staffing to handle it, living in fear of a sneak attack by a completely imposing and unsympathetic DM, fighting each other for hours and wondering who’s going to jump ship or get the axe next…how can I look them in the face and ask them to give a crap about how much money this company makes or whether my store goes up in flames?

How can we do these things to our people and our customers and still preach the lifestyle and ideals that we do? We can’t have it both ways. We can focus on reducing waste, but these days it seems that the “waste” we’re referring to is the partners, and eventually, the customers. The company I joined 5 years ago is unrecognizable.

Uncle Howard, these opportunities are interfering with my third place environment.
I’ve connected, discovered, but don’t know how to respond.
I have not received, nor can I provide, legendary service.

Where’s my service recovery coupon?

[PDX SM]

JerseyGurl- Still waiting for my letter..........

and T your SM probably has made some bad hiring decisions in the past, which have cause your store to run ineffecient...Your store is probably one of those ones Ive waited in line 10 mins, only to have my beverage poorly made. I think its about time some DM's got into the stores and coach their SM's into making smarter decisions.

[Darleen]

I have read every post on this thread. Some I agree with, some not. What is clear is that the baristas are tired, stressed and wondering what happened. I can totally understand some of the frustration. However, as I continue to go to other coffee places now, I see the same thing at them. Not enough staff on hand to take care of the customer. Everyone is cutting back. I don't want to belittle how anyone is feeling, please believe that. Where I am now, I can only schedule 3 employees per shift. Is it taxing? YES. Do we get it done? Yes. It is not just Starbucks that is cutting hours. I went to McDonald's the other day and had to wait over 15 minutes for a burger!!!! I kid you not!! There were two people working a line of 15+ people. Can you imagine how stressed they were? Things will get better, just try to hold on. Try to stay focused and please do not leave the company. Through all of this, one thing is clear, most of you still love this company or this wouldn't pain you so much. If you didn't care, you wouldn't be here voicing your concerns. You have that right, to voice how you feel. I may not agree with some of the feelings, but I defend your right to express them. I wish all of you well and hope that things get better at your stores. It's the holidays, a time when everyone should be happy and it saddens me to see the pressure some of you are feeling. If I could say one thing to lift your spirits let me say this, and please believe it is true. You are not alone. This is not just going on at Starbucks. This is the economy we are in. My sister just got laid off after 20+ years with AT&T. She is a single mom with a child. Talk about stress. My husband tells me his company is trimming as well, we are stressed about that. Starbucks is not immune to the economy, and this is not going away for awhile so how you deal with it is very important. I wish things were better, I really do. I hate to see so many of you stressed beyond your means. My heart goes out to all of you and I hope you will deal with it as best you can.

[hah!]

So i passed my health inspection last week and failed my ecosure today because we had two people on the floor for three hours with a steady stream of people in. I can already tell the labor cut is working!

[Herman M]

It is easy to love your job in the good times. It is in the lean times your true character shows itself.

While I empathize that more is being asked of our retail partners, you are the last in line for that honor. Do you see a thread where SSC partners complained like this about increased workloads after chunks of partners there were shed? How about from your Facilities partners after yet another round of cuts not too long ago? No, they all made up their minds to press on or move on and did it. What I see now is the realization of the perception by outsiders that our baristas really do feel entitled and when times get tough are more than willing to complain about being "let down" loudly and publicly.

If you are only keeping your job until "something better comes along", you fall into this group. Make your choice. Act on it. Commit to stay or talk to your manager today. I am sure they could use your hours to keep a couple partners afloat. Your inaction is preventing other partners from having full schedules. So make that decision today. Are you in or out? No "I'm in until something else comes along". Make your choice and move on.

If you are in, be all the way in. Find a way to make it work. It is tough, and may not be easy in the short run. But here's an insight: Starbucks is a pendulum. Many of you came in during the flush upswing. Now we head the other way for a while. And then, guess what? It gets better. It may not be the same, but it does get better. It has happened before, and will happen again.

Will you be here to help swing it back?

[tj]

My thing with this letter was it's in the wrong place. What good does a letter that's meant to raise awareness about the direction of Starbucks as it relates to the consumer when its posted where 95% of those who will read it know the story already? It just becomes an avenue to vent. I want to see this on Consumerist, and maybe CNN(that might be pushing it). But the point still stands, if this was something that needed to be said like most here agree, then its audience needs to be expanded.

[Deadtireinla]

Around 2005, the company started hiring people like feministbarista. Now that transformation is complete. Congratulations.

[Coffee Mistress]

As I gear up for today's closing shift I realize that I have a decision to make. I can go in letting my sense of defeat show or I can make the best of a difficult situation. I have often said that when you hit bottom you have two choices. You can either get back up and move on or, you can grab a shovel and start digging your grave. I pick getting back up and helping my SM make the best of a bad situation. I pick making my customers feel like the most important people in the world for 3 minutes of their day. I pick being part of the solution, rather than the problem. I believe that, as hard as it will be, we can "right this ship." Will doing more with less be easy? NO! Will it be worth it in the end? I say YES! Those of us that stick it out and work our tails off will see the rewards. In the meantime, I'm sorry that the wait times will be longer and that my store may not be as clean as it should be. I will do my best to get to all of the little stuff that makes the customer experience the best that it can be. I commit to helping my SM by looking for new ways to save my store money. Now, if only I can maintain this feeling beyond the first 5 minutes of my shift, I should be alright.

[feministabarista]

I see no reason for such animosity toward my comments. Again, I mean no disrespect to anyone on here whatsoever, and I apologize if that is what you all are reading into my sincere plea for those of you who are honestly just not talented enough to make great drinks, provide legendary service, and run store operations in a world class fashion with 3 measily % less labor to quit...

If this minor adjustment that is for the good of us all is the breaking point for you babies, than why don't we all just admit what you have probably been secretly thinking to yourselves for a very long time now... You just are not Starbucks material.

Maybe you had poor training, because you had a shitty SM, (I didn't know how lousy SMs out there were until I started reading this rag)...

Maybe you at one point in your past were adaptable and reasonable and could run a 4 group LaMarzocco during the rush like an elite athlete without some other barista there to coddle you and double-bar on a Verisimo (which requires a third of the energy on the part of the barista) and you could do it while providing legendary service and making perfect foam and espresso by hand...

maybe at one point in your time here you were able to close a 2000 square foot (read: small) store with 2 people instead of 3, because it wasn't too much to ask that you worked the whole time you were on the clock- heck you were happy for the opportunity, working at Starbucks was something to be proud of!

But now you are sad, sad, unhappy, disenchanted people, and you just can't do those things anymore without someone needing to change your dirty diapers.

You need to have extra non-coverage to clean your stores, because there is just no time during the day to do cafe slides, and for you whiny SMs, you need 8 hours of admin to write reviews, and do interviews and write schedules and connect with your partners because there just is no way that you could do all that and more with 4 hours if you put your mind to it...

I'm sorry if the truth hurts some of you, but the fact remains, Starbucks has made a right call here and unless you meet the aforementioned citeria of lameness, you understand that.

I'm begging you people. If you really can't deal, if you really hate this company so much, if you just are spread too thin and can not keep up with the rest of us, quit now. I can assure you I have a stack of applications on my desk right now of people who would love to be in your position, and I'm sure there is an army of ASMs out there who would love to run your stores if you can't do it anymore.

I'm just stating the obvious, if you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.

[feministabarista]

- "Around 2005, the company started hiring people like feministbarista. Now that transformation is complete. Congratulations."

Actually I was hired in 2000 as a barista and worked my way up to SM by 2003.

Just to set the record straight... not that your comment made any sense or anything.

[feministabarista]

- "Around 2005, the company started hiring people like feministbarista. Now that transformation is complete. Congratulations."

Actually I was hired in 2000 as a barista and worked my way up to SM by 2003.

Just to set the record straight... not that your comment made any sense or anything.

[Ex Bux Pgh]

Darleen,

I hope you understand the respect I have for you and for all the kind words here over the years. But I have to respectfully disagree with you here. It is NOT the same everywhere, and people who are being pushed to the limit need to realize that they do have options, even in this economy.

I lost my job at one of the busiest stores in my region (avg about 28-30 K per week). I was the ASM in my store, and I was the 5th management partner to be let go, with a line of people behind me losing their jobs as well. My position has yet to be filled at that store. I find it hard to believe that there are no qualified people to transfer or promote to the ASM position in a busy drive-thru. It makes it much easier to believe that the ASM position is being eliminated, and that those duties are being pushed onto the Shift Supervisors, and with no commensurate raise in pay, and obviously without being given non-coverage time to get those jobs done.

The Pittsburgh region has lost a LOT of good management partners over the last 8 months or so. I guess it is merely coincidental that everyone who has been let go has been male. These are people who lived the Starbucks mission and guiding principles. Every one of us has landed on our feet out there, and have better jobs than Starbucks could even dream of providing us.

I am now working for the local cable franchise, in customer service. The expectations are lower, but the pay is higher. Our focus is on the customer, though we do have sales and upgrade quotas to meet. However, the bar is set to an attainable level, and almost everyone on the floor meets their bonus requirements. The job doesn't have nearly the constant pressure that is present at Starbucks, we are adequately staffed at all times, there are people whose primary job it is to support us and provide us coaching, incentive and encouragement. There are actual rewards for a job well done; rewards that go beyond the ability to keep the job for another week. And honestly, I'd much rather have free cable and internet in my home than a free pound of coffee every week. And call centers such as mine exist all over the country, and are almost always hiring. Even in a struggling economy, people are more likely to retain their cable, internet and telephone (not to mention wireless services, which is another big opportunity in this area). And another big plus is that there is a full six week training program, then a couple weeks of mentoring on the job, before new hires are assigned their work area and required to perform.

I guess I should be thanking Starbucks for letting me go at this point. They saved me what could have been years of trying to save a sinking ship. It cost me some self confidence for a while, and made me feel horrible that I couldn't live up to the job of an ASM (at least in their minds). But I am much happier, better paid, and more relaxed in my work now, while still being well compensated. And I have plenty of options available to me in my off time. Not to mention better benefits (including hugely better tuition reimbursement than Starbucks will ever provide).

In some ways, I still defend Starbucks, or at least what Starbucks used to be. And I probably will continue to defend them, though I have no idea why after what they did to me and to others. Perhaps one day the company will wake up again and jettison the managers and directors who, through their own greed and ambition, trashed the ideals that once made the company great. When that day comes, I will be first in line to sing their praises again, and spend my money there beyond a cup or two of drip coffee per week. Until that time, I will quietly attempt to get their better partners to come over to where I work now. There are greener pastures out there. I hope the current scare tactics and ungodly work requirements that come with no incentive or reward or even explanation don't burn the good ones out too badly. But I, for one, would love to be a fly on the wall when the next "Best Places to Work" and Partner View surveys come out. Starbucks is going to have a rude awakening one day, when they find out what their so-called "partners" really think of the direction their company is moving.

[espressocoloredglasses]

All you whiners need to go to a third world country and pick beans for a living, then maybe you would appreciate your life here in America! This is the land of opportunity. Start your own Starbucks like coffee house and see how long you stand the pressures. Here is an example for you...I am clocked out, and waiting on a friend. While sitting in the cafe, I decide to press some Thanksgiving blend and sample cranberry orange scones. I pass them around to the customers in the store. I am not getting paid to do this or am I, you see in "connecting" with the customers, I met someone who needed a part time employee for her internet based business. We made arrangements to meet and talk. Guess who got the job? Yep! Go the extra mile! Be legendary and step outside of your boxes. There are opportunities all around. Yes, I have two jobs that I absolutely love and I am paying cash for Christmas this year!

[WBishop]

Don't work off the clock. Of the many reasons not to do so, here's a big one: it can be construed as tax evasion.

The IRS considers time worked as wages owed. If you do work, your employer owes you wages for that time, even if you didn't clock in. Yes, the employer can get in trouble here, but the bigger issue is that the IRS considers the employee to be responsible for all income taxes.

Since the employee in this case has worked an extra amount "off the clock", the IRS considers the employee to have earned wages for that time, and thus liable for income tax on those wages, regardless of whether those wages have been paid.

Bear in mind, there are steep penalties for providing false information to the IRS, which the employee would be doing if he omitted the off-clock hours and wages on his tax return.

The better way to handle pressure to work off the clock is to simply file a complaint with the state and federal Department of Labor. While the IRS' days of "padlocking the doors" of offending companies are over, the DoL has been known to shut down businesses for wage violations. You can file a complaint anonymously, but you may not receive compensation if you do so.

What are experiencing is possibly a problem at a district or regional level. However, once the DoL fines Starbucks corporate for wage and labor violations, you can be assured the working conditions will change.

[utahbarista]

Call me dumb, but I don't understand why we are all crazy busy and the company is still hurting so much? I don't pretend to be an economist...but it would make sense to cut labor if the stores were slower. Thing is: I haven't seen that happen at all!

What about your stores? Are your sales actually slipping THIS much? And I live in UTAH of all places!!!!

[Me]

It is not about the cuts of labour in itself. It is more about the way everything is supposed to happen now. And all the Baristas saying it is not good to cut on labour are having the long term effect of it in their mind. A lost customer is much harder to get back than to keep an existing one. Soon we will spend more on advertising to attract new customers than the labour cut would ever save.
This is what we are complaining about. It just doesn't make sense in the long run. Not if you just get told to keep doing everything and more in less time. If they would guide us in saving time during certain tasks, now that would be different. Most people wouldn't even notice they are saving time.

[brian bauer (formerly #1182341)]

get this:

i worked for SBUX over 4 years. i walked off the job 2 months ago out of self-respect (go ahead and judge me).

last night i bumped into a beloved regular and i informed him of the latest labor cuts, and warned him that he should be expecting to spend more time standing in line in the morning.

he started laughing and told me, "i walked in there this morning and there was a line out the door. i promptly walked out and happily spent my money next door."

bravo, SBUX.

enjoy the holidays!

[Darleen]

Darleen,

I hope you understand the respect I have for you and for all the kind words here over the years. But I have to respectfully disagree with you here. It is NOT the same everywhere, and people who are being pushed to the limit need to realize that they do have options, even in this economy.

Yes, but you are talking about a whole different market here. You are working for a cable co. not a food co. I understand that some businesses are maybe in the clear for now, what I am speaking to directly is the food service industry. Look at all of the chains that have shut their doors or filed Chapter 11. I do not want to minimize any of the sentiments here. I truly feel for those who feel they are stretched beyond their means, I just think Starbucks doesn't hold the monopoly on this. I am not the best cook, my husband would litterally starve if he depended on me to feed him (lol) we eat out a lot, believe me when I say this is everywhere. Everytime we go to a restaurant we see that it is understaffed, everytime! I think it is better to have to work a bit harder than to lose my job, again, just my opinion. I have to work 15 days straight at the holidays because I am short on shift supervisors, does it suck? You betcha! But after not having a job for two + months I welcome the chance to show what I'm made of to my new company. I will get through it, so will all of you. Your all a lot stronger than your situation. I really believe that with all of the posts on here, wether happy or not, you all still care so deeply for your stores, your team and your customers, push through for them. This will not be the "norm" things will get better as the economy improves. Right now the company is asking a lot from you, show them that you can still be the awesome team you are. When it gets too tough think about all of the people like my sister that do not have a job at the holidays and who are worried how they will feed their family or pay their mortgage next month. It puts it into perspective, things are ugly, but they will get better. My heart aches when I think of all the wonderful partners out there, who give their all every shift. Don't give up, rely on your team, trust each other. Do what's right by them and your customers. When the day is done and you lay your head down on your pillow you will have a sense of accomplishment that Howard or no one can take away. I wish you all the best, and hope that you can find a way to be the best you can be in this time of uncertainty.

[Me]

It is not that we are busier or as busy as we used to be. It just feels much busier (or at least the same in some stores) because the line up is still there. Just now it moves slower because there are way more stores only staffed with two max. three people instead of four or five.
If you only have three people on the floor, have to cover the deposit, lunches and 15 minute breaks that leaves effectively only two partners on the floor, even while 3 are scheduled. Quite often (especially during pre-closing times) I end up being the only partner on the floor for an hour or longer (sometimes two) while the other partners are cleaning, stocking, putting orders away taking their breaks etc.

[humanbean]

Dear Feministabarista,
While you are entitled to your opinion, you are not entitled to rail offensive slurs at poeple you don't know, whose talent, skill, dedication, and work ethic you have no idea about. Sadly, the only passion or creativity you seem to exhibit is geared toward negativity and hatred. At that level, you will never achieve the heights of achievement that some who have posted here have and will. Your only major success is in soaring to new levels of offensive, sarcastic, rude ignorance. Sorry, there's no pin for that. The whole mantra of this company has been, until recently, lead with your heart, connect, "pour your heart into it"? The issue is not that these talented, capable, intelligent, concerned, and connected people are simply underachievers who can't handle real work. It's that we and the public in general have been lied to, manipulated, disrespected, abused, and devalued by a company who continues to stake its value on its difference in those areas. I was, and still am, a dedicated, professional, notorious overachiever, alot of us are. We are professional, capable, experienced, and intelligent enough business wise to compete and excell anywhere, including Starbucks. We simply chose not to on the grounds of ethical integrity, values, principles, and professionalism. Thanks to those fundamental elements of character, a huge amount of talent, and an undeniable dedication, we don't have to. Sadly, these concepts are utterly non-existant to you, whih explains alot about why you are still there. Congratulations! You are the new face of Starbucks, which is what's wrong with it. People like you are the reason the soul of this once great company is dying, stocks are tanking, and creative, passionate, able people are leaving on a daily basis. Please, if you can't spew something nice, don't spew at all. It only serves to further illustrate the problem and everyone else's point. If anyone should cast stones at the partners whose skill, enthusiasm, and hard work helped build this company, it certainly is not you. You are an abomination, and I would be more than willing to match skills, talent, achievements, awards, commendations, numbers, credentials, or resumes with you any time. Enjoy your holiday, thank the partners you have nothing but contempt for that you still have a job, and leave them alone.

[the dude]

Baristas are where the rubber meets the road. The first contact between customers and Starbucks! The experience is dying and I see it in my own store although my manager thinks it will be no different on the floor. Bull!

Howard and gang please review your action before you engage!

[the dude]

Everybody let stop inputing on this site and do something about it! We need to Unionize more now than ever. Our company is dying and I smell buy out! I don't want to work for Pepsi but if it keeps my job than so be it!

[spence]

I am going to bust my tail while I'm there. Right up until they fire me. (or I lose benefits) I'm concerned for customers, worried about partner injuries and I still love Starbucks. I'm not blind to what is happening; not do I like seeing it in print.
I'm still pouring espresso into shots, I still stir heavy syrups and I am still going to smile and laugh. Unfortunately, I do not have time to do sweeps, load shelves, offer suggestions, sample products and that Monday afternoon Espresso Event is just a joke. With two people in the store and a line to the door; it's just not going to happen.

[spence]

Unhappy experiences at Sbux will not make me quit. Joining a union will.

[tj]

Guys if you all believe so strongly in this then raise awareness. Find the right avenue to disseminate this letter. Otherwise we are just shouting into the wind. Nothing will change unless we can make this a big enough blip on the radar and be forced to respond. At the very least it would cut down the amount of needless retail. That itself would make this worthwhile.

[sbuckssm]

Quite frankly, I've seen this happen time and time again. You get frustrated with the company, just see all the negatives, and then quit.

I can't tell you how many people I've seen quit, and then come back 6 months later asking to be rehired.

Lets remember something.
ANY RETAIL OR CUSTOMER SERVICE BUSINESS IS LIKE THIS.
Yes, as a SM I'm having to work off the clock, however, ask any SM or GM working at other restaurants and ask them how many hours they are working? My old SM said that they averaged 60 hours as a GM for other retail companies.

Go talk to all the employees that General Motors has laid off, and other companies are laying off right now. I'm wondering how they would respond to your complaining.

In the month of November half a million people lost their jobs. just ONE month.
Yeah, Starbucks stock currently hovers at around 9 dollars. However, if you check out the stock prices of some major companies, you'll be shocked to see how much the economy has hit them.

I never understood this though. If you hate your job so much, why don't you quit? It just doesn't make sense...you sit here, whining away, yet welcome to a free country. YOU CAN QUIT IF YOU WANT. YOU CAN GO APPLY FOR ANY JOB YOU WANT. NO ONE IS FORCING YOU TO STICK WITH THE COMPANY. If you honestly feel like you have a better opportunity, then go get it? I remember during one of my store meetings, I simply asked my partners this.
"If you can go and find a better part-time retail job that offers better benefits, better pay, then go right ahead. If you want to go work at McDonalds, or Dunkin Donuts, go ahead. I ask you all to really think about the past when you have worked at other retail jobs, and really dig down and ask if the Starbucks job is really all that bad"

none of my employees said anything.
none of them have left.

People, we live in a free country...it's capitalism to the best! no one is keeping you in this horrible situation at Starbucks except....you guessed it YOURSELF! not Howard, not your SM, but YOU. if you despise the company then just quit and go find another job.
Sitting here whining about the company you work for, and continue to take a paycheck and benefits from them...

just simply says alot about your character.

[mike]

Again, I have been in foodservice for 35 years..I took a second job at sbux to check it out...(and cause I loved coffee)...Baristas, it is not much better elswhere...if at all!!

[sbuckssm]

Oh and by the way....

The people who complain about the fact that Howard makes so much..and how unfair Starbucks is to them....

Maybe you should think about whether or not America is the right country for you. Sounds like you need to move to a country which is governed by socialism.

The beauty about capitalism is simply that you are free to do whatever you want.
However, YOU personally are held accountable for the state that you are in. Not the government, not your boss, no one.

You've got the choice to do whatever you want...just sounds like alot of you are little babies that would rather sit and whine, then go MAKE A DECISION and do something.

[JerseyGurl]

PDX SM~

Actually, my store's CV scores are almost ALL above standard, the highest in out district and usually in the top 10%. So please do not judge what you do not know. We are caring, efficient, friendly, crazy about cleaning and most of all hardworking.

[sbuckssm]

Amen Mike.

Typically the ones who are complaining are probably the ones who haven't worked at a McDonalds, or other retail jobs.

They know it too, they know its bad in other places...that's why they won't just go and apply there.

[tj]

I think the message is being lost in all the finger pointing. This is about the loss of the Starbucks Experience, a cornerstone of what makes starbucks such a great place. This is about hopefully making starbucks take a second look at their plan to make it through this economic crisis. By cutting costs the way they are in the short term, they are in danger of hurting themselves in the long run. This is about open, honest discussion on the direction of this geat company. So let's stop telling each other what THEY should do and instead ask ourselves what WE CAN do.

[scootes]

does anyone TRULY believe that come jan the labor will change back to before the "conference call"? i've worked hotel/food service for 25+YRS and know that on the corporate exec level(used to be an exec chef) that they know if it can be done now then it should always be that way. i've sat in those meetings talking about how this one makes to much they go now to hire some cheaper. the sad thing for me is my customer (regular and new ) don't understand WHY the get them in and out attitude doesn't allow for that connection anymore and we look understaffed. oh yea, we are! they only see us working faster and it looks as though we don't know what were are doing whidch they know we do. -3% labor is here to stay so they next question to ask is are you staying as an employee? i fear that after the holidays the turn over rate will be sky-high and that will really save money, right?

[cover letter samples]

well starbuck is going downhills. Take my words.

[Q]

Welcome to the new economy. Every industry is cutting workers and the people that are left are making less to do more. Be thankful you're employed, although maybe you shouldn't be with your attitude. Starbucks still offers a pretty nice compensation package compared to other service industry hourly workers. I think it's amazing given the state of the economy that people will continue to pay for what is essentially a luxury item. Things at Starbucks are probably going to get worse before they get better.

[scootes]

mike- so your all for outsourcing the jobs here in america to other countries,right? i know i control my life. i have many times chosen to change due to differences in direction from companies. i never begrudge anyone leaving a job for the betterment of their life but to say move out of the country? socialism?

[the dude]

You I'm tired of being censored on this site! here's a new thread What does this site accomplish?

[the dude]

Go ahead bust your ass until the end and here is some advice from a 44 year old that has worked for major corps and wall street and every sales job you can think of! I see the writing on the wall, My next day off which will be many now as a shift sup. I'm going to pound the pavement for employment elsewhere

Good Luck to all hard working Starbuckians everywhere!

[jabanga]

the "suck it up and tough it out" contingent just don't get it as far as i am concerned. they continually justify the current state of affairs with starbucks because "other companies are the same". well, starbucks wasn't supposed to be the same. it was supposed to be better. "partners" are supposed to "pour their heart into it" in a "great work environment" where people are treated with "respect and dignity" and customers are entitled to be "enthusiastically satisfied". the current environment is not conducive to any of the above. i realize the groundwork for this disconnect was laid when they decided to start opening 2500 stores a year and stretched themselves way too thin and hired waaay too many people on all levels who had no idea what starbucks was about. the thing is, you can't preach "getting back to basics" and "enriching the human spirit" while your actions are obviously headed completely in the other direction. well, you can, and they are, but anyone with any ability to perceive reality will see the disconnect and hypocrisy inherent in taking such an approach.

for those of you asking those who question the direction of the company to quit and move on for some applicant in a pile of applications on some manager's desk, let me ask you: do you really want to work in a company with rampant turnover, a high percentage of inexperienced baristas at all times who barely know how to make drinks let alone know the regular customers and their drink preferences? well, i guess you already do, so you already got your wish...congratulations.

[curious]

I too understand why the company is doing this. My problem, as an ASM, is that I feel as though I am lying to my partners. I have worked a good five hours off the clock this week--but, oh, my DM says "time worked equals time paid." Right. Where does she want me to account for that?

[C to the B]

Half of the comments above are from people who want to quit because things have gotten so bad. The other half are from people who seem to be saying "If you don't like it, then quit". How about no one quits. We like working at SBux but we don't like whats going on. If only there was some way we could join together and have our collective voice actually listened to by management... Oh yeah, THE UNION! We don't have to quit - we could make things better and, hopefully, get things back on track.

Some unions (like the UAW) have grown into giant, bloated corporations and have made things worse. But the concept of a union, on a grass roots level, is a good idea. I hope each of you will consider joining the Starbucks Workers Union and making things better in your store.

[I heart Clover]

I'm sorry do not get me wrong, I love the company but I also love a roof over my head, food in both me and my kids stomaches,heat in the winter, and a little money to save for my son's college education. I cannot do this on 12 hours a week. I do not want to leave the company, but eventually I am going to be forced to. I unfortunately do not have the parental safety net that other partners seem to have. Starbucks is my main source of income, it is not just my booze money. I can't sit and wait this out until things get better. I've got someone in this world that relies on me for his basic needs, and I have to be able to provide them. We can't live in our car, or crash on our friends couch. I cannot feed my kid out of a garbage can, or build a fire in the middle of my living room for heat. My landlord doesn't want to hear the spin that management and corporate is feeding us, he just wants his money.
I agree with the Barista call in sick day, unfotunately there will be the ball licking ass kissers who will submit to the beast that has become Starbucks.

[I heart Clover]

One other thing, my manager told me to call other stores for hours. What a joke, because they are all getting screwed too. She also told me to apply for food stamps and public housing...Thank you Starbucks!!!

[Mrs. Tillinghamshackles]

You know, as soon as someone uses swearing or crude language in an argument, I automatically lose respect for it, no matter how valid the points.

I lament the loss of decency.

[Deadtiredinla]

Feministabarista,
Unlike most of the people posting, I see your point. However, I would really like you to see mine, actually, see ours. From your various posting, its seems that you are the kind of person that Starbucks would seem to enjoy employing at this stage in the game. You seem like a hard-working, aggressive, no nonsense, non-emotional, competitive type of person. I believe that the company is lucky to have you, because you are the kind of employee that they need to execute their so called "transformation". In fact, if I were your RDM, I would promote you to DM ASAP. The company can no longer afford to have the passionate, caring, sensitive, understanding people that built this company. They will do nothing but drag it down with their constant complaining about how they miss being treated with dignity and respect. All that whining about the company not living up to the mission statement, saying that they provide healthcare and then not giving hours to quaify for it. Who cares about them. Starbucks doesn't care about them, and neither do you. So enjoy your time with the company. You deserve each other.

[Naptown Barista]

Man, lots of good points in this thread. I can objectively see all sides to the issues presented. The true disconnect seems to be in communicating things "downstream". In an environment in which your coaching "skills" must coincide with the infamous "what, what, why?", those skills must have been lost at various levels of promotion for those folks who've worked their way up.

The biggest fallacy right now is that CUSTOMERS come FIRST. The don't. Oh, corporate will always TELL you they do, and try to reinforce it to the media (right howie?), but they don't. When a CUSTOMER is expected to wait 10 minutes for a drink, it's because of some brilliant decision to not have enough people to handle the customer count. That customer is NOT first, they're SECOND behind saving a buck. Sometimes you have to spend money to make money. If a store is expected to cut labor by minus 3%, it's an acknowledgement that CUSTOMERS (and partners) are being shorted. If you need to run your store at -3% labor, then whatever magic formula that's used to determine the labor is obviously flawed. You're telling your customers "we're not gonna provide enough labor to serve you effectively". As a customer, I'd be irritated. As a partner, I'm stressed but can handle it. As a SHAREHOLDER, I'm OUTRAGED that rather than trying to GROW business a company would hold existing customers with so little regard when other businesses are having a field day taking customers from a company in which I own shares.

Ever listen to one of those analyst calls, where hapless howie spews the latest half-truths to those who control so many shares? "Our Espresso Excellence training is paying huge dividends", has been mentioned on each call since spring. He always leaves out the "...but we are no longer utilizing it because we can save 3 seconds of labor, and we don't REALLY care about the drink quality, we just SAY that we do". Howie even touted it again in New Orleans!!!

Remember when the Partner View surveys came out? Hear about the results? (Probably not.) No mention that there's some work to be done there, at least between Seattle and the DM level. If the FACE of your company is the people that work the front lines, the face is frowning right now with no new, INNOVATIVE ways to fix things. This company in the past had been quick to acknowledge mistakes & move on (i.e. Chantico...or is it now signature hot chocolate.) Better to try & fail than not have tried at all.

Remember the 170 million spent on lease buyouts for closed stores? Think of all of the customer base that could have been nurtured over that time. All of the internal talent lost. Sadly, there has probably been enough turnover over the last few years in Seattle that we'll be hearing "We're going to brew coffee every hour", unbeknownst to the new lackey that we USED to do it that way.

The utopians in Seattle have no idea. Lets have them sit & observe what goes on in an uncontrolled environment. When howie or some other lackey shows up for a store visit, everything is perfect for them. Let them make unannounced store visits nationwide to see what's REALLY going on. When howie is on TV sampling products, do you think he made it? heck no, somebody else did. Think howie did the dishes? ground the coffee? stocked milk? tried to ring at the POS? Don't get me wrong, I COULDN'T do their job. But let them acknowledge that they couldn't do mine with the same level of excellence that I can!

Sorry for the dissertation, just very frazzled right now.

"...Downward"