Zohran Mamdani Calls for Boycott of Starbucks

New York City’s socialist Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani urged his followers to boycott Starbucks as union workers go on strike across the country. Starbucks baristas began an open-ended strike on Thursday amid stalled contract negotiations and the socialist Democrat called in people to avoid Starbucks during the strike.

"Starbucks workers across the country are on an Unfair Labor Practices strike, fighting for a fair contract," Mamdani wrote on X on Thursday evening. "While workers are on strike, I won't be buying any Starbucks, and I'm asking you to join us." “Together, we can send a powerful message: No contract, no coffee.”

Zohran Mamdani appealed to his supporters to boycott Starbucks in solidarity with striking union baristas. He has asked people to avoid the coffee chain until the nationwide walkout ends.

The call showed how Mamdani –who has promised New Yorkers free buses, a rent freeze and free child care to New Yorkers – plans to use his newfound political influence. Starbucks workers in more than 25 US cities went on strike Thursday during “Red Cup Day,” when employees hand out free holiday-themed cups to customers. It’s typically a major sales day for the java giant every year. Starbucks said about 99.9% of its stores remained open.

The open-ended strike coincided with Red Cup Day, when the chain offers free reusable holiday cups to customers. Historically, it's driven record sales for the company. "As of today, Starbucks workers across the country are officially ON STRIKE," the union wrote through a post on social media. "And we're prepared for this to become the biggest and longest ULP strike in Starbucks history. Say #NoContractNoCoffee with us: DON'T BUY STARBUCKS for the duration of our open-ended ULP strike! $SBUX."

Starbucks Workers United, which represents about 9,000 of the chain’s 200,000-plus baristas, accused the giant coffee chain of being unwilling to negotiate. The union warned the strikes could expand if there is no progress in reaching a fair contract.

The company has accused the union of putting forth unreasonable contract proposals, arguing it already offers “the best job in retail” with an average pay of $19 an hour – a salary worth more than $30 an hour when benefits are included, Starbucks claims. The current strike is the fourth such action the union has organized against Starbucks since 2023, and the third since Brian Niccol took over the chain in 2024.

Workers United says it has filed more than 1,000 unfair labor practice complaints against Starbucks with the National Labor Relations Board. This marks the union’s fourth strike since 2023 and the third since Brian Niccol took over as CEO in 2024.

Starbucks said a strike during last year’s “Red Cup Day” led to about 60 stores temporarily shutting down. The company has also faced criticism for closing hundreds of stores across the country with only a few days’ notice, including 59 unionized outlets, according to the New York Post.