Product Spotlight: The Barista Bottle
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Dear Howard Schultz,
I write to you as one partner to another. I have proudly worked with Starbucks for the last three years in two states and six stores. I want to describe my experiences as a partner and to, hopefully, help you and others understand why I have major concerns about the current realities of our company and implications for the future.
I am concerned with the many rapid changes to our products and services and how those changes have been poorly communicated and prepared for. Recent changes have deemphasized the art of coffee and the human connection it affords. Coffee is no longer shared and experienced in our stores, it is juggled along with what seems to be an endlessly growing pile of other responsibilities.
Baristas are underpaid. Tenure is underappreciated. To be transparent, as an Assistant Store Manager I receive a competitive salary and a more than fair total pay package. But I’m not writing about my situation. I’m writing about the majority of partners for whom pay does not constitute a livable income. Yes, I know, Starbucks has great benefits. Our health care is excellent, if you can afford it. Retirement options are great, if you don’t need that money for rent. The opportunity to attend ASU online is life-changing, if you have enough time for studies between your Starbucks job and the other job most inevitably have to work in order to pay bills. All partners should earn a living wage and be competitively compensated for the high level of performance Starbucks demands of partners.
Some may ask, why should baristas get paid more? Aren’t they just making coffee? How hard is it? I answer, more difficult than one would think, especially with new labor models. Stores earn less labor than previous years doing comparable business. Partners are given unrealistic labor restrictions that do not allow for exceptional customer service but are then judged harshly when service expectations are not met. We have emphasized TSDs, labor over/under, and sales comps meanwhile deemphasizing connections with customers and fellow partners. Customer care is not primarily rewarded. Rather, speed and efficiency is most prized. The quality of hand-crafted beverage matters little compared to the wait time of the car at the window. This is the undeniable reality of every store I have worked in. Starbucks is no longer a theater for coffee but a factory.
Finally, I want to honestly address what I believe to be the most damning reality in Starbucks stores. A customer service climate of bullies and subservients. This issue is related to the problem of understaffing stores in that partners are unable to provide the exceptional experience customers have come to expect from Starbucks. But it’s bigger than that. In our efforts to “make every moment right” for customers we’ve given opportunity for customers to become bullies and for partners to be taken advantage of on a daily basis. In the past year, I’ve heard a customer yell as a transfer barista because she didn’t know “they don’t charge me for the breve at this store” only to be told by the store manager that she should just learn to accept that kind of behavior. I’ve had a drink thrown at me by a customer only to be told that she is just very particular and we can’t upset her because she’s a regular. I’ve been called a f***ing idiot by a customer who waited too long for his water only to be told that’s just the way the food service industry is. I’ve stood by when a fellow partner was called a stupid b***h because she couldn’t hear a customer’s order because I second-guessed whether or not I would be supported by those above me if I intervened. I’ve been called a customer’s b***h, servant, and slave at multiple stores, in multiple cities, in 2 separate states. Meanwhile, I hear from those above me, it doesn’t matter so long as we “make every moment right” for the customer. Partners are bullied. We are treated like subservients. We do not come to work excited and challenged but full of dread and defeated. This is not my experience only. It is the experience of many. I may even go so far as to say the majority of partners. This is wrong. In our efforts to “make every moment right” for the customer Starbucks cannot forsake making every moment right for the partner.
So what do I want to change? There are four changes which I think will make the greatest impact. First, increase starting pay to a livable wage. If some benefits need to be cut then let it be so. But starting pay must increase. Second, reward partners for tenure and ability. The current pay scale does not reward tenure and the set annual increase does not motivate partners to work hard and develop. Third, change the labor model so that work and service expected can realistically be accomplished. Fourth, cultivate relationships of dignity and respect not just between partners and from partners to customers but demand that same dignity and respect from customers to partners.
We are committed to inspiring and nurturing the spirit of our customers. Let us embrace the challenge of inspiring and nurturing the spirit of our partners. Thank you for taking the time to read this letter.
Signed,
Simeon Purkey
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