Unionized Starbucks stores in Atlanta are gearing up to join a national strike over stalled contract negotiations, unless Starbucks makes a serious offer, says a local Starbucks Workers United (SBWU) organizer. On Sept. 22 for instance, SBWU workers in Seattle held a rally at the Starbucks Reserve Roastery, just blocks from Starbucks’ original store at Pike Place. Fraught contract negotiationsSBWU has been trying to win a contract with Starbucks since late 2021, when the first store unionized. Last April, 490 SBWU bargaining delegates overwhelmingly voted down Starbuck’s foundational framework package. “For less than what they paid CEO Brian Niccol last year, Starbucks can finalize fair contracts with 12,000+ union baristas,” SBWU says.