Starbucks Corp. said Monday that it is closing 16 U.S. stores after workers reported incidents related to drug use and other disruptions in cafes.
Starbucks said it would permanently close six stores each in the Seattle and Los Angeles areas, two in Portland, Ore., and single locations in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. by the end of the month.
The company said it received reports from workers about incidents that they said involved drug use by some customers and in some cases, members of the public, in certain locations. Starbucks said it would transfer employees to other locations when it permanently closes the stores.
“We read every incident report you file—it’s a lot,” wrote U.S. operations leads Debbie Stroud and Denise Nelson in a message to U.S. employees Monday. “We cannot serve as partners if we don’t first feel safe at work,” they said, referring to the company’s term for employees.
Starbucks also said that it would give store managers leeway to close restrooms, limit seating or reduce operations in response to safety concerns. The moves are part of policies aimed at addressing workers’ concerns, including about their safety on the job, the company said.
Managers can continue to change store layouts if needed, including limiting seating to customers, the spokeswoman said. The company said it would provide additional guidance to baristas in how to deal with active shooter scenarios and conflict de-escalation at work.
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Starbucks said workers reported safety concerns during outreach sessions after interim chief executive Howard Schultz returned to the company earlier this year.
“Like so much of the world right now, the Starbucks business as it is built today is not set up to fully satisfy the evolving behaviors, needs and expectations of our partners or customers,” Mr. Schultz wrote in a letter to employees Monday.
Starbucks said the closures included a location in Washington D.C.’s Union Station, a Los Angeles store in a touristy area at the corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street, and a cafe in Philadelphia’s downtown City Center.
Nicky DeClerico, a 65-year-old Philadelphia resident, said he curtailed his trips to Starbucks when the Covid-19 pandemic hit. Now, he said, crime downtown has made him reluctant to return to the cafes.
Mr. DeClerico said he didn’t blame Starbucks employees for not wanting to work in urban stores, where he said thinly staffed locations could feel scary for workers. “If you have crime, nothing can survive,” he said.
A leader from Starbucks Workers United, a union that is organizing workers at the chain’s U.S. cafes, said employees were surprised by the decision to shutter the Seattle cafes and that the company should have involved workers more in the decision.