If anyone has been paying attention to the news as of late, you might have seen something about Starbucks laying off over 900 corporate employees, and closing over 400 stores across the U.S. that are either "not profitable" or "does not align with our goals to create the back-to-Starbucks cafe experience."

Unfortunately, my store was one of them.

My cafe had been around for the last two plus decades, serving many people from this community like retired firefighters, school teachers, nurses, and many families alike both old and new.

The announcement came the morning of September 25th, 2025. My boss, who was 3 days into her 10 day vacation to visit family out of the country, was first called to be informed of the news that her store would be closed before she returned home from her vacation, and that us on her team would be either transferred or separated. There was nothing she could do.

I was informed after my boss was, I was pulled aside by my district manager and otherwise asked if I had heard the news Starbucks announced that morning. I said yes, and she continued to explain to me that our cafe was selected to close by September 28th. September 27th would be our last day of operations. That's only two days to otherwise inform and say our goodbyes to our community that our store has been in service to for the last two plus decades.

Gone in the blink of an eye.

I was not ensured my employment would be secured, nor was I guaranteed at first that if I were to be separated and reapply, that I would be able to keep my tenure, raises, benefits, etc. I have been an employee for the last 4+ years, through COVID, and helped at over a dozen cafes in our district and in other states. I competed in an internal barista competition where I placed 2nd in the quarter-finals, placing in the top 50 baristas in the company across the U.S., and made quite the name for myself through my peers, leaders, and customers alike.

Despite all of this, I was not guaranteed anything, and was only told that the decisions would be announced of who was being kept, and who was being let go, on Sunday, September 28th, at 5:00PM.

On Sunday, our entire team was asked to come in at 7:00AM and help pack up our store; box up supplies, product, clean everything, etc. Essentially using us to wrap up our store and shut it down for good before any of us were told what would happen to us.

At 5:00PM, I was emailed the decision, and I was separated from the company after almost 5 years of service as a dedicated barista and shift supervisor. I would have hit my 5th anniversary on November 2nd, 2025, and received a commemorative glass+wood-carded/ornamented placard for my 5 years of employment, pins, and an increase in benefits/raises like a sabbatical. Some pretty nice stuff. The other two supervisors I work with were offered transfers, as well as a handful of our baristas. Our most tenured baristas were separated, two of which who had been with the company for several years, and one of which who was a black apron coffee master.

Despite my impact in this company, despite my accomplishments in the competitions as a barista champion, despite my impact in my community, my dedication to the craft of pursuing education in the industry and earning my black coffee master apron, it meant nothing to this company to keep me. Their handling of this entire situation is deplorable, and a shameful example of how corporate greed once again triumphs over the common working class.

Thankfully, with Washington State's WARN Act, I am guaranteed to be paid for the next 60 days for the average amount of hours I worked in my last month of employment, so I will be OK for the next two months. I was also not told that my tenure and benefits would be safe so long as I applied to be rehired within 30 days of my separation, which will go into effect some time in late-November.

So for three days, I had to essentially pack up my own cafe, say goodbye, and sit and wait and hope my job and financial security were safe, or that I'd be doomed to figure it out for myself and kicked to the curb with nothing but a severance package and no guarantee of returning to the company with the same pay, benefits, tenure, etc.

To say I am absolutely defeated is an understatement. This entire ordeal has been traumatic and dehumanizing; this company has little to no empathy for its employees who bring in the money, otherwise showing clearly that they think we are all just some replicable bunch of numbers on some spreadsheet. The damage they have caused to families, this community, and this company is irreversible. I only work in this company because of the people I get to work with, and the community I get to serve. This company can burn for all I care, but I will continue to put forth my heart and carry on in honor of all those who were lost along the way with all these sweeping policy changes, dramatic course-correcting, and "overhauling" this company thinks is all justifiable to let go of baristas that have dedicated themselves to this brand that was otherwise "inclusive" and "partner-first" when it came to their decisions and leadership. Our CEO is the 2nd most paid CEO in the country, on top of the fact that our company pays for his commute from Los Angeles to Seattle twice a week via Private Jet as part of his sign-on agreement, earns 6,666 times more than baristas do, and yet we get burned.

I hope that Starbucks burns more than the coffee beans they roast. Boycott Starbucks. Unionize.

I will be okay, but I wanted to let everyone know what happened and what my thoughts are on all of this.