Seven Starbucks employees in Memphis, Tennessee, who lost their jobs earlier this year after speaking with media about their union activism, must be reinstated, a federal judge ruled on Thursday.
The National Labor Relations Board had filed an injunction challenging their firing in the US District Court of Western Tennessee.
NLRB General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo said that Starbucks, and other employers should take note of the fact that the NLRB will continue to protect workers right to organize without interference from their employer.
Starbucks said Thursday that it strongly disagrees with the judge's decision, saying that the employees were fired because they let a TV crew into the store after hours.
The employees were found to have violated multiple policies and failed to maintain a secure work environment and safety standards, the company said in a statement. Partners in the union are not exempt from following policies that are in place to protect partners, customers and communities we serve. Since last year, more than 220 Starbucks coffee shops in the U.S. have voted to unionize.
In May, Starbucks invested $1 billion in employees as a result of the union push, including a bump in hourly pay and increased training time.
We are on the floor every day. We are creating the Starbucks experience. We have valuable input that we believe we can share with the company.