‘I will never do it again’: South Korea’s Starbucks rebel baristas | Labor Rights

Seoul, South Korea – At midday week, the Starbucks team south of Seoul in Yangjae is packed with office workers looking for refreshments after lunch.

The line runs from the counter to the sliding glass doors of the shop while the staff at the white collar stands to order hot and cold drinks. Some of the seasonal highlights are Lavender Beige Oat Latte with cornmeal and Fresh Citrus Tea garnished with lemongrass and a slice of orange.

“We come here with our friends after lunch because we know everyone will get what they want,” Yoon Min-ju, who works for a nearby interior design company, told Al Jazeera.

“In small coffee shops, they usually only have coffee and tea. At Starbucks, even people who don’t like coffee or snacks can order freely,” he said.

Starbucks is very popular in South Korea so it can look like there is a store for almost any block. The country is Starbucks’ fourth largest market, with 1,611 stores and approximately 20,000 employees, whom the company calls “partners”.

But despite the brand’s popularity – tied to its staple food, mixing with American middle-class and well-known brands – the coffee giant is now facing the challenge of its image in South Korea in a way that highlights how things work in its stores. The way employees respond may indicate a change in employment in a a country with a history of powerful demonstrations.

In October, when the company held an event to hand out cups reusable to buy a drink, the fatigue and frustration of the baristas continued.

At Blind, a program in which employees can anonymously describe workplaces, employees complain about low pay and complications. Others also reported dangerous cases involving 650 beverages at a time, while rushing to pour, mix and serve many flawless customers, smiling and keeping customers friendly.

In December, Ryu Ho-jeong, a left-wing politician, released the results of a study that found that Starbucks 613 employees sought medical treatment for work-related stress in 2020, more than five times higher than in 2015. than last year.

To find out about their plight, the staff rented a high-light flatbed car to drive from Seoul to Gangnam area south of the city, announcing their grievances to the crowd that gathered at the Starbucks area across the city. lunch. The banner contained the message to the company and messages including “‘Partners’ is your main asset. Don’t forget that” and “We will never take it back”.

The demonstrations became headlines around the world, and they were able to obtain permits from Starbucks Korea, which promised to hire more than 1,600 workers to reduce inventory in their stores. The company, which entered South Korea in 1999 at a time when coffee roasting was relatively new, also promised to increase wages according to age and occupation.

As workers at Starbucks were fighting their battle, South Korean workers saw how a group of young factory workers were able to gain interest and benefit.

The Korea Confederation of Trade Unions, a large group of workers with more than one million members in factories across the country, welcomed the workers’ work at Starbucks and encouraged them to work for a new partnership.

“Through the establishment of a trade union, workers can address their grievances,” the KCTU said in a statement.

Starbucks critics, many of them in their 20s and 30s, moved to the left in a bid for a deal, saying that instead of negotiating with Starbucks executives, they could better communicate their needs through new channels such as car shows.

In South Korea, operating agencies have been established for many years in shipping and manufacturing industries, but in recent years we have seen efforts to bring together some of the most successful companies in the country, including tech titans Kakao and Naver.

‘Militant war’

Yu Gyu-chang, a professor of human resources at Hanyang University, told Al Jazeera that South Korea’s working class culture is beginning to focus on the lives of workers.

“Human pressure has been growing with the millennials and the Z generation,” Yu said.

The rise in labor unions comes at a time when disunity is a major issue in South Korea’s public affairs, which is reflected in the pop Squid Game culture, as many in the country seek ways to earn a living in a growing economy.

According to a statement issued by the ministry of labor in December, the risk for South Korean corporations has increased by 2020 to 14.2 percent, up from 12.5 percent last year.

“Many young people want to work for affiliated companies because they realize that organizations can provide security and help them get the benefits they want,” Lee Byoung-hoon, an industry relations specialist at Chung-Ang University, told Al Jazeera.

“What they do not like is the old tradition of promoting solidarity in Korea, wars, wars and demonstrations.”

Ryu, a politician, said his research showed that the conditions of employees at Starbucks still needed to be improved.

“Undoubtedly there has been a second and third demonstration,” he said.

While their success is not enough, the way Starbucks employees took on their employers – as well as the national interest – could reflect the transformation of the South Korean workers’ union, far from the old demonstrations and the time when employees seek new ways to communicate. requirements.

“In the case of the younger generation, more important than the success, failure or the amount of interest they receive, is that they do not want their arguments or intentions to be misinterpreted at all,” said Lim Myung-ho, a professor of education. psychology at Dankook University.

“They are confident that they can express their views without outside help,” Lim said. “There have been a lot of cases like Starbucks.”