United for Respect

New Campaign Campaigns

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  Starbucks: End clopens now!

  My life is hectic but I manage to make it all work. I go to school at night and -- until July -- worked two part time jobs to make ends meet. One of my jobs was working as a barista for more than 2 years at a Starbucks in New Haven, CT. At Starbucks, I often worked back to back closing and then opening shifts - with 7 or 8 hours between shifts. Among Starbucks baristas this is known as a "clopening." Last year, my store didn’t have a manager so I was clopening more than 6 times a month! Lately, because of my second job, I clopened 1-2 times a month. And because of high turnover in the store, my boss started scheduling me wherever they needed me instead of taking into account my second job and school schedules. In July, I was called in to work at the last minute, even though I was needed at my other job. My manager wrote me up because I was unable to get a replacement for a time I wasn't even scheduled for. This isn’t right - my time counts. And when the store was understaffed on closing shifts, I was forced to stay even later than my scheduled shift in order to make sure the store was ready to open for the morning rush. Because I was frequently scheduled for clopening shifts, I got just 4 or 5 hours of sleep a night. I was doing all I could to get ahead, but Starbucks’ scheduling practices made me question whether that was possible and I parted ways with Starbucks. Even though I no longer work there, I know I am not the only partner struggling with these issues. I want to help all my former coworkers by asking the company to give workers 11 hours of rest between shifts in all U.S. stores, across the board so we aren’t at the mercy of individual managers Many of us have different experiences at Starbucks, depending on our manager. Please join me in asking Starbucks for consistent protections across the company, starting with healthy schedules across the board.

  10,752 of 15,000 Signatures

  Created by Ciara Moran
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  All stores should close and pay employees impacted by extreme weather

  We need a fair workweek so that when shifts get cancelled last minute we still have hours we can count on. That’s why we’re calling on some of the wealthiest corporations in our country like Starbucks, Walmart, Amazon and Target to provide disaster relief pay for employees who have had to miss work this week due to the cold. Our bills don’t stop just because it gets cold!

  3,255 of 4,000 Signatures

  Created by Amber Kofman
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  San Francisco Federal Reserve: Pick a President Who Represents Workers, Not Corporations and Banks

  One of the most important economic policymaking positions in the country, the president of the San Francisco Federal Reserve, is vacant. 10 years after the financial crash, we can’t afford to make the same mistakes of the past. We need an independent San Francisco Fed president who will fight for working people of color. Instead of filling this position with another Fed insider, we need someone who actually understands and represents workers and people of color in the largest Fed bank region in the country.

  7,824 of 8,000 Signatures

  Created by Nick Gallant
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  Toys R Us: Employees Deserve Severance Pay

  My name is Mikey and I work at Toys R Us in Eugene, Oregon. This week, I found out from news reports that Toys R Us will shutdown and liquidate its entire U.S. operation. This news is devastating to say the least. My coworkers and I have no idea what’s going on or when our store will close – all of the updates we’re getting are from the news and corporate is keeping us in the dark. I love my job so much. I enjoy working at Toys R Us and helping kids find toys they love in the store. But I’ve heard that Toys R Us owners are Wall Street companies that don’t care about running a toy business – they just want a quick profit. Thousands of families counting on these jobs will be impacted by Toys R Us’ going out of business. We will lose our jobs. Meanwhile, the CEO of Toys R Us, David Brandon, makes a base salary of $3.7 million. Just days before filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last September, 5 of the top Toys 'R' Us executives received $8.2 million in retention bonuses. David Brandon received $2.8 million and asked for court approval of up to another $12 million in incentive bonuses. This corporate greed is hurting me and my family. And it’s unacceptable. We’re losing our jobs and our livelihoods while these executives gave themselves huge payoffs. We call on Toys R Us and Babies R Us to give all laid off employees severance pay. Thanks for standing with us.

  11,040 of 15,000 Signatures

  Created by Mikey Fox
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  No one should get fired for speaking out

  My name is Shaheim Wright and I’ve been organizing with an amazing group of retail workers standing up for fair schedules in Philadelphia based on my own experience at PetSmart with last minute changes to shifts, no input on schedules from employees, not enough hours each week, and totally unpredictable and erratic hours every week. After I spoke to the press about my erratic work hours and why I support fair workweek legislation, I experienced retaliation for speaking out. My manager Kathy started to only schedule me for the 6:30AM shifts. There isn’t reliable public transportation available that early in the morning, so I had to take expensive cabs or leave at 5 AM to walk to work. I asked my manager if I could get any later shifts – and she told me she’d accept my “resignation.” I was nervous to lose my job but I knew I had an entire movement supporting me to continue speaking out for what’s right. That’s why I testified at the Philadelphia City Council about the impacts of these abusive scheduling practices on us and our community and why we need change. The day after the hearing, I showed up for my 6:30AM shift and I was not allowed to work. I’m completely devastated – I need this job. I support a household of seven. I did everything right, and I was fired simply because I stood up for what I believe in. I need my job back, but we also need a #FairWorkweekPHL because 130,000 fellow Philadelphians just like me shouldn’t be at the whims of our managers to get the hours we need. And I know we can win because we’re stronger together in a movement that’s unstoppable. Thank you for supporting our movement and continuing to speak out for what’s right. They can’t stop us.

  324 of 400 Signatures

  Created by Shaheim Wright
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  Retail Workers need $15 and full-time

  Aaron Lawson, Dollar General, Williamsburg, OH I’ve worked at Dollar General now for eight months. I make $8.15 an hour and struggle to scrape enough money together just to eat each week. Because my hours fluctuate from ten to 25 hours each week I can only worry just about basics, keeping a roof over my head, my bills and making sure I have a frozen dinner waiting for me at home when I get off work. I walk to work everyday but if I made $15 an hour with consistent, fulltime hours the first thing I would do is buy a car and get a driver’s license. The freedom of having a car and being able to go anywhere would be amazing. ---- Regina Mays, Walmart, High Point, NC My name is Regina Mays and I make $11.05 an hour after almost 6 years at Walmart. Often, I’m only scheduled for 32 hours each week but I’ve gone weeks with no hours. Not knowing what I’ll get from week to week makes it almost impossible to budget. What’s more, I have two children with special needs that are my world and inconsistent schedules make it a constant struggle to be able to provide for them. If I made $15 an hour with consistent, full-time hours I would be able to afford a more reliable vehicle. My van breaks down on the way to work but I can’t afford a new one. All I want to be able to do is serve my community by working at Walmart and be able to provide for my family. Is that too much to ask? ---- Becky Lam, Victoria’s Secret, Texas I’ve been with Victoria’s Secret for eight months and I make $10 an hour. I like my job but it’s tough to get consistent schedules. They are changing all the time and often last minute. If you miss a shift you get written up. If I made $15 an hour and had consistent, full-time hours I would be able to pay off more student loans. I just completed my first year of college and already have a lot.

  1,864 of 2,000 Signatures

  Created by Trish Rose
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  ALL Retail stores should close on Thanksgiving Day

  This year, some retailers are opening as early as 6am on Thanksgiving Day. Every year these companies take more and more family time away from hardworking employees. This is yet another example of retail companies completely disregarding our lives. We are being pushed to work harder, longer hours for the same measly paychecks that don’t support our families, while retail executives and CEOs sit at home with their families and collect millions from our work. Thanksgiving is a day everyone should get to spend with our families. We are calling on all retail stores to close on Thanksgiving, as a fully paid holiday, so retail workers across the country can spend time with our families.

  3,451 of 4,000 Signatures

  Created by Trish Rose
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  Starbucks: Give us a fair workweek!

  We’re Starbucks employees and we love our customers. Every single day, dedicated customers like Georgia, Chris, Jim, Herb, Colleen, Anna, Rob, Sandy, Charlie, Tim, Mike, Mark, Ashley, Lee, Andie and countless others come into our stores, order their drinks, and share a little bit of their day with us. Our customers are loyal, consistent, and predictable (about their drink orders, at least!) and we love serving them. But we need Starbucks to treat us like we treat our customers. We, employees of Starbucks, demand Starbucks give us one-month advance notice of our schedules, stable hours, and access to full-time work. We regularly have schedules that fluctuate from 15 hours to 40 hours to no hours. We often get our schedules less than a week in advance — that’s not nearly enough to plan for childcare, another job, or school… or enough to cover our bills. And few baristas actually get those health benefits Starbucks brags about because it costs too much or they don’t work enough hours to qualify. Jannette Navarro, a Starbucks barista and young mom, just told her story in the New York Times of the constant chaos of an erratic Starbucks schedule: “You’re waiting on your job to control your life,” she said, with the scheduling software used by her employer dictating everything from “how much sleep Gavin [her son] will get to what groceries I’ll be able to buy this month.” All across the country, Starbucks baristas like us sold copies of the New York Times paper that exposed what it's like to be one of the 130,000 workers making the lattes that keep America going every day. We are a few of those baristas and, like Jannette, we also struggle with the nightmarish "magic" of Starbucks' computerized schedules. After the article came out, Starbucks responded with an announcement that they will now post schedules one week in advance and stop giving baristas closing and opening shifts — we call them "clopens" — back to back. Basically just adhering to policies they already have – and this isn't enough. We are coming together with our dedicated customers — like you — and asking Starbucks for one-month advance notice of our schedules, stable hours, and access to full-time work. There's no reason why our work schedules can't be as consistent as our loyal customers who line up for their morning “Venti soy latte”. Photo credit: https://www.flickr.com/people/ivypics/

  8,051 of 9,000 Signatures

  Created by Zee, Connor, Liberte, and Sarah
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  Howard Schultz, Meet With Your Baristas!

  Our schedules constantly change, many of us struggle to get enough work hours, we can't plan our lives around our jobs, and we find it difficult if not impossible to call out sick because of the difficulty of finding coverage. These things contribute to a stressful work environment and decrease morale at our stores. We've seen great, hardworking coworkers leave the company for these reasons. We, the baristas of Starbucks, experience these things firsthand, and we are the very people within the company who should be proposing solutions. We want to talk to Howard Schultz in person, and have a conversation about how we can move forward together to make Starbucks better. Please sign on in support!

  188 of 200 Signatures

  Created by Leila, Darrion, Grant, and Melanie
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  Tell Walmart CEO Doug McMillon: Take Action Now to Prevent More Deaths

  Walmart is the country’s largest corporate employer, and I’m alarmed at how little they’re doing to stop the spread of the virus. Walmart also laid the groundwork for this crisis through years of negligence, leaving hundreds of thousands of employees without adequate paid sick leave or health insurance. That means if someone wakes up sick, they have to make the impossible decision between working sick or losing their pay. What Walmart decides to do doesn’t just affect folks who work there -- it affects customers, suppliers, contractors, and families when their loved ones die due to corporate negligence.

  71 of 100 Signatures

  Created by Angela McMiller