I'm Jayce Hall and I'm a Starbucks barista at S Neil Street! In early July 2025, our location voted to join the fight for a fair contract with Starbucks Workers United (SBWU), making us the second in the district to become unionized! We are all tired of being underpaid, overworked and left without support from the company that ironically calls us "partners". We deserve so much better from a company that has the largest CEO to worker pay gap in modern history.

SBWU has been fighting for a fair contract since 2021 and Starbucks has repeatedly refused to agree to a fair contract while also ILLEGALLY enforcing unilateral policy changes that have only made our jobs harder and customers' experiences worse. After 4 years the demands are the same, as the issues we face have yet to be resolved through the company's good will.

Because of these issues, SBWU has launched an indefinite strike that began on November 13th, the infamous Red Cup Day- one of the companies biggest and most profitable promotional days. Again, they have refused to bargain in good faith and have chosen to prioritize a CEO that makes 6,666x more than the average barista, instead of the workers that actually run the stores.

Striking is a last resort- it is no small feat and it comes with many risks to us workers. One of these risks is lost wages. Lost wages means workers will struggle financially more than we already do, having been living paycheck to paycheck. That's why strike funds and community support are so important.

Which is why we are asking those in the community to aid and support us in this fight! 100% of this local fund will go directly to the striking workers of the South Neil Street Starbucks location. We will use these funds to help us pay rent, insurance and other bills, get groceries, source materials for the strike, or even supplement lost wages for any unfairly disciplined workers.

We all greatly appreciate your support and solidarity!