INDIANAPOLIS — Starbucks employees at the Mass Ave location in downtown Indianapolis walked off the job Tuesday, joining a growing wave of unionized baristas striking across the country in an ongoing labor dispute with the coffee giant.
The Christmas Eve walkout came just days after 98% of Starbucks Workers United members voted on December 17 to authorize a strike if necessary. The vote coincided with the union’s final bargaining session of the year, setting the stage for widespread demonstrations.
Mass Ave workers joined approximately 5,000 baristas from over 32 states in a national strike, demanding raises, benefits, improved staffing, and the resolution of alleged unfair labor practices. According to Starbucks Workers United, which represents more than 400 unionized Starbucks stores, the strike also aims to address outstanding litigation with the Seattle-based company.
The coordinated five-day strike began Friday, initially targeting locations in Los Angeles, Chicago, and Seattle before expanding nationwide. On Christmas Eve, union members at over 170 Starbucks stores—including multiple locations in Indiana—participated, shutting down about 2% of the chain’s stores across the country. Starbucks spokesperson Phil Gee confirmed that the remaining 98% of stores operated as usual.
Outside the Mass Ave location, around 20 workers and supporters formed a picket line, chanting slogans like “no contract, no coffee.” Many cited financial strain and unsustainable working conditions as key reasons for the strike.
Jensen Williams, who has worked at the Mass Ave Starbucks for three years, said working at the chain had been a childhood dream but revealed the challenges of low wages and limited hours.
“Once you realize that $15 an hour still isn’t enough, it’s been a big deal for us,” Williams said, noting that most workers are scheduled for fewer than 20 hours per week, making it difficult to afford living expenses in Indianapolis without a roommate. “The concept of Starbucks is very deceiving to the customer, and once you work here, you see how messed up it actually is.”
Shift supervisor Aspen Henderson, a six-year veteran of the Mass Ave store, echoed these sentiments, expressing frustration over the difficulty of saving for school while working at Starbucks.
“I’d like to go back to school, but right now that’s just not a reality,” Henderson said. “If this job paid me enough, maybe I could.”
Starbucks spokesperson Gee urged unionized workers to return to the bargaining table, highlighting the company’s progress in negotiations.
“Workers United delegates prematurely ended our bargaining session this week,” Gee said in a statement. “It is disappointing they didn’t return to the table given the progress we’ve made to date. Since April, we’ve held more than nine bargaining sessions over 20 days and reached over 30 meaningful agreements on hundreds of topics.”
The Mass Ave location became the first Starbucks in Indianapolis to unionize in July, part of a broader trend that began when a Buffalo, New York, store unionized in 2021. Since then, several Indiana stores have followed suit, including locations in Bloomington and Plainfield.
As unionized workers plan to return to their posts on Christmas or the following day, the strike underscores the growing tensions between Starbucks and its baristas, who continue to push for better pay and working conditions in a rapidly expanding labor movement.
