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Howard Schultz: Starbucks Fights for Workers’ Hearts and Minds

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    After six years in retirement, Howard Schultz returned to the top job at Starbucks in April — this time to try to rectify growing unrest among workers at the company as it resists a union effort sweeping the nation.

    He’s also back because he says the country is facing a “crisis of capitalism,” and believes leadership is needed to “reinvent the role and responsibility of the public company,” he said on the DealBook on Thursday. DC Policy Forum from The New York Times. †

    These excerpts have been edited and compressed for clarity.

    I came back to reinvent the role and responsibility of a publicly traded company at a time when there is a cultural and political shift in relation to the crisis of capitalism – the needs and requirements of the employee in a company today.

    I don’t want to be critical, but I have to be honest that in many ways the government has left people behind. If you call thousands of people who work for a salary today and you ask them about economic mobility and specifically about the promise of a country, for the most part they will say it is not available to me. And unfortunately if you ask people who are black or brown, they will no doubt say it’s not available to me for the most part.

    Thinking about the past, 25 years before the Affordable Care Act, Starbucks created comprehensive health insurance for our people. Shares in the form of stock options for everyone, including part-time workers. Free tuition. We could go on, but the truth is that those benefits, as good as they are and were, are not good enough for today’s worker, especially since Gen Z has a different view of the world. And also because the government hasn’t given them a path they think they deserve.

    Unfortunately, Starbucks is the proxy of what is happening. We’re in the middle of it. When a company as progressive as Starbucks, which has done so much and is in the 100th percentile of benefits to our people across our industry, could be under threat from a third party, that is, any company in America. Now I’ve said publicly that I’m not against unions, but the history of unions is based on the fact that companies in the 1940s, 50s and 60s abused their people. We are not active in the mining industry; we don’t abuse our people.

    But the big problem in the country is that companies are not doing enough and that the company is the enemy.

    We do not believe that a third party should lead our people. And so we are in a battle for the hearts and minds of our people.

    Building a great sustainable business revolves around one thing: the currency of trust.

    When I look at gas prices of $6 and coming out at $7 a gallon, we’re on a collision course with time in terms of how long the American consumer — American family — can continue to spend at the level that they are. And so it’s hard to be optimistic unless there’s a plan to get inflation under control.

    Russia is an enemy of America, period. In my view, China is a fierce competitor.

    The fact that we are going back and forth between China and the US on diplomacy is so unhealthy. It’s so against what the world needs.

    With regard to the $360 billion in tariffs Trump imposed, it is beyond me why the President of the United States is not lifting those tariffs today.

    In the past few months alone, we’ve had three major ongoing issues. We have gun violence and the situation in Uvalde and Buffalo. We have the upcoming situation with the Supreme Court in terms of Roe v. Wade. And we have the ongoing issue of immigration. These three issues are on the minds of our people, and I can promise you that they look to Starbucks, and Starbucks leaders, to stand up for what they believe is consistent with our company’s values ​​and guiding principles.

    It can’t be useful. It can’t be about calling the cashier.

    In the world we live in, no company, no CEO can hide. Everyone knows everything. Anything you say in public or private is out there. And so let’s make sure you stand up for the truth.

    If you ask our people, what are the two or three biggest benefits that Starbucks offers, number 1 is Spotify. That’s what it is. The second is Lyra Health, which is mental health that we provide to our people.

    We serve 100 million people at Starbucks, and there is an issue of equitable safety in our stores in terms of people using our stores as a public bathroom, and we need to provide a safe environment for our people and our customers. And the mental health crisis in the country is severe, acute and getting worse.

    Today we went to a Starbucks community store in Anacostia, five miles from here, a community that sadly symbolizes communities across the country that have no right to be left behind. And this is where Starbucks is building a community store. Now we had a round table with the manager and other people, and we were told that today from 12 noon to 6 pm – every day – no one is on the street. Why? Because people fear their children will be shot – five miles from the White House.

    I think we need to train our people better. We need to harden our stores and keep our people safe. I don’t know if we can keep our bathrooms open.

    Starbucks is trying to solve a problem and address a problem that is the responsibility of the government.

    Despite everything I’ve tried, I haven’t been able to get our people back to work. I pleaded with them. I said I’d get on my knees. I’m going to do push ups. Whatever you want. Coming back. No, they don’t come back to the level I want. And, you know, we’re a very collaborative, creative group. I realize that I am an old fashioned person and this is a different generation. I am at the office at 7 and leave at 7 in the evening. I’m trying to make an example. I think people come back two to three days a week and that’s the way – that’s the way it is. But what I’m evaluating is, what’s the productivity level? And you know, it seems like people are working from home.

    What do you think? Is Starbucks a Proxy for What’s Happening in America? Let us know: dealbook@CBNewz.