Providence Starbucks employees join nationwide strike on Red Cup Day

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Starbucks employees in Providence will take part in a national one-day strike calling for better working conditions on Thursday.

Employees are calling it the “Red Cup Rebellion.”

A demonstration is set for 11 a.m. outside the Starbucks on Financial Plaza.

The union is demanding a new contract with better pay, staffing, and control for local stores — including the ability to turn off mobile ordering.

The union alleges the company has refused to bargain with issues voiced by employees.

As part of the strike, employees demand the company to turn off mobile ordering on promotional sales days, like Red Cup Day on Thursday.

Employees said mobile ordering on days promotion days causes a mass rush of customers to stores that they’re not prepared for, because no accommodations have been made for adequate staffing.

They say drink orders pile up quickly and are abandoned, while customers in the store get frustrated waiting for theirs.

They claim customers who have been waiting for a long time take their anger out on employees who are rushing to make popular holiday drinks as quickly as they can.

Some union workers took part in a similar strike on Red Cup Day last year, which reportedly ended up being the highest selling day ever for Starbucks.