Starbucks closed a New York store 'illegally' after its workers unionized, a report says

Starbucks workers have unionized in dozens of US stores. Spencer Platt/Getty Images

• Starbucks workers' union filed a complaint against the company, saying it closed a store illegally.
• The workers accuse the coffee chain of retaliating against them for unionizing, Bloomberg reported.
• The store being permanently closed is in Ithaca, New York state.

Starbucks' decision to permanently close a store in Ithaca, New York, has prompted its workers' union to accuse the company of retaliation for recent union activism, Bloomberg reported.

The union filed the complaint about the "illegal" closure to the National Labor Relations Board on Friday. 

Reggie Borges, a spokesperson for Starbucks, told Insider that the closure was due to facilities, staffing, and "time and attendance" issues.

"We open and close stores as a regular part of our operations. With deep care and urgency, we continuously work to create the kind of store environment that partners and customers expect of Starbucks."

According to the report, Starbucks attorney Alan Model emailed the union to inform of the closure, saying: "As you know, there have been many issues with regard to the condition of the store (e.g., the grease trap) and it does not make sense to further operate the store."

One employee, Evan Sunshine, told Bloomberg: "Starbucks won't get away with retaliating against us like this. Whatever it takes, however long it may take, we will persevere." 

Three Ithaca stores have voted to unionize in the past few months, along with more than 50 Starbucks stores nationwide.

Other workers from other giants have either attempted or succeeded in unionizing, such as Apple workers who filed to do so in April but later withdrew their request amid alleged intimidation.

Amazon, however, pulled off a surprise victory, marking the retail giant's first unionized warehouse. 

Employees at the Ithaca store, near the Cornell University campus, voted to unionize in April. The drive was prompted by an overflowing grease trap that had spilled wastewater and oil onto the floor, according to Bloomberg. 

Workers United, an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union, has helped Starbucks workers to unionize, and they said it would support the staff.

Gary Bonadonna, a regional leader for the union, told Bloomberg that the closure was a "blatant act of war" against the union's members, adding: "We have their backs."