‘Revenge of the Rust belt’: Starbucks film-maker on Baristas vs Billionaires
Summary
Starbucks workers in Buffalo, New York, began a public union-organizing campaign in 2021 during the Covid-19 pandemic. The efforts and company resistance are featured in a new documentary, Baristas vs Billionaires, which shows workers’ struggles against Starbucks’ opposition and highlights a broader labor movement among young workers.Key Facts
- Starbucks workers in Buffalo started organizing a union in 2021 amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
- The union drive faced strong opposition from Starbucks and its billionaire former CEO, Howard Schultz.
- The documentary Baristas vs Billionaires tells the story of this union struggle and is narrated by Susan Sarandon with Alec Baldwin as a producer.
- The film’s director, Mark Mori, is a former steelworker and union member who sees this union effort as part of a larger labor movement revival.
- Many Starbucks workers come from families affected by the decline of US manufacturing industries in the Rust Belt region.
- The union is demanding a $17 minimum wage, better staffing and schedules, workplace protections, and action on unfair labor practices.
- More than 700 Starbucks stores have voted to unionize since 2021.
- Starbucks Workers United started a boycott in August 2025 over the company’s failure to agree on a first union contract.
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