Atlanta committee to weigh Starbucks boycott—and a halt to council purchases

An Atlanta proposal to support unionized Starbucks workers would do more than urge residents to stop buying the company’s coffee: it would also stop Starbucks purchases with City Council funds for meetings, conferences and other official events.⁠[1]

The Community Development/Human Services Committee is scheduled to consider the resolution Oct. 13 at 1:30 p.m. The measure remains pending. Council’s Oct. 5 action was a referral without objection—not adoption of the boycott endorsement or purchasing pledge.⁠[1]

Sponsored by Councilmembers Kelsea Bond, Antonio Lewis and Michael Julian Bond, resolution 26-R-4188 would endorse the Workers United-SEIU boycott identified in the proposal. It would encourage residents and neighboring local councils to refrain from purchasing Starbucks products until the company finalizes a fair union contract.⁠[1]

The distinction between encouragement and the council’s own spending matters. Residents would be asked to participate; the purchasing provision says Starbucks products “shall not be purchased” with council funds for official events. That provision does not set out a purchasing ban covering every city department.⁠[1]

The proposed endpoint is a contract both reached and ratified by Starbucks and Workers United-SEIU. The resolution describes the workers’ demands as fair wages, adequate staffing, sufficient hours, workplace protections and respect on the job. Those are the proposal’s stated goals, not evidence that an agreement has been reached.⁠[1]

The committee meeting is scheduled for the Larry M. Dingle Committee Room at City Hall, 55 Trinity Avenue. Its agenda establishes an opportunity to consider the measure, not a guarantee of passage.⁠[1]