STARBUCKS workers urged it to drop its anti-union stance and sit round the table in an olive branch to the global coffee chain on Friday.

Last week’s historic victory saw the Starbucks store in Elmwood, Buffalo become the first to form a union.

The National Labour Relations Board (NLRB) confirmed on Friday that Workers United, which represents some 86,000 workers, will be certified as the bargaining representative.

Workers said that the firm should now recognise the certification and sign the Starbucks agreement for equity and sustainability and negotiate a contract that will set a new industry standard.

“I know so many of us are struggling to recognise the original company we started working for. Starbucks was supposed to be a company founded on nurturing the human spirit and yet it’s clear they spared no expense to try to stop the movement in Buffalo — but today was a big step forward,” Elmwood worker Michelle Eisen said.

“Our union is certified and we’re offering an olive branch to Starbucks. We’re asking them to put the past behind us, to sit down at the bargaining table to show the world they’re ready to bargain with their partners,” she added.

Starbucks bosses waged a huge drive to prevent the workers from forming a union, spending millions to hire a union-busting company and sending managers into stores to intimidate staff.

A complaint has been launched to the NLRB over the conduct of Starbucks bosses at the Camp Road store, where an aggressive and coercive campaign is said to have affected the outcome of the vote.

But workers said that they wanted to work together to improve terms and conditions in the company’s stores.

“We don’t want to fight Starbucks. We’re asking them to turn over a new leaf. We’re asking them to drop this anti-union campaign and end this union busting.

“On the day of the election we asked Starbucks to sign a set of principles. Those principles mean Starbucks would recognise our vote and sit down to negotiate a contract that both the partners and Starbucks can be proud of. 

“We hope Starbucks takes this opportunity to sign the agreement, respect all of their partners’ right to organise, and sit down with their partners at the bargaining table,” Elmwood worker Jaz Brisack said.

The unionisation drive began in September when workers in three New York stores wrote to Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson.

They were angry over a chaotic working environment, erratic hours and difficulty taking sick leave during the Covid-19 pandemic.