EDMONTON – Starbucks workers at the Kingsway Ave. & 117 St. store in Edmonton have voted to join the United Steelworkers (USW) union. There are over 25 partners at the store and will become members of USW Local 1-207.
“This is such an exciting step forward for us at Kingsway drive-thru! I’m so proud of all my fellow partners who have worked so hard to get us here and I’m excited to see what the future holds for us,” said Vala Ingolfsson, a Kingsway Starbucks partner.
The Kingsway store joins now joins several other unionized locations in Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario who have recently joined the USW.
“I hope that our success encourages other Starbucks partners in Edmonton to consider how USW could support their stores and workers’ needs,” added Ingolfsson.
“We are thrilled to welcome more Starbucks workers into our union family,” said Scott Lunny, USW Director for Western Canada. “The partners at the Kingsway Starbucks are joining the increasing number of Starbucks workers across Canada who are organizing for improved working conditions and wages. We look forward to supporting these workers as they unite to be heard and get the respect they deserve from Starbucks.”
The Kingsway Starbucks becomes the fifth unionized store in Alberta with the USW. An application for a sixth store in Calgary remains under review with the Alberta Labour Relations Board following a sealed vote.
The USW represents 225,000 members in nearly every economic sector across Canada and is the largest private-sector union in North America, with 850,000 members in Canada, the United States and the Caribbean.
Each year, thousands of workers choose to join the USW because of our strong track record in creating healthier, safer and more respectful workplaces and negotiating better working conditions and fairer compensation – including good wages, benefits and pensions.
Workers interested in joining the United Steelworkers union can learn more about the benefits at betterworknow.ca/starbucks.
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