PARK SLOPE—  Seven people protesting the closure of a Starbucks on Seventh Ave. were arrested on the afternoon of Tuesday, Jan. 28. Unionized workers delivered their strike notice at 12 p.m., and 30 minutes later, the New York Police Department (NYPD) entered and arrested individuals who were occupying the store. 

These arrests mark one of the first instances of Starbucks union members being arrested at a protest, though the charges have not yet been announced. “Allies are being arrested in NYC after staging peaceful sit-in to support union baristas’ fight for a contract. It is shameful that Starbucks let it get to this point,” Starbucks Workers United posted on X.

“We had some allies and some supporters who occupied the cafe after the workers marched out on strike wanting to draw attention to the fact that the store is being closed permanently,” said Michelle Eisen, a Starbucks partner of over 10 years. 

The event was organized by unionized baristas and supporters who alleged that Starbucks closed the store in retaliation to the store’s unionization in October 2024. A combination of community members, other unions and allies from different stores attended in solidarity with the Park Slope baristas. 

“[Starbucks] can inevitably do what they decide to do but we’re gonna respond,” said Arianna Ayala, a Starbucks partner of four years from the 325 Lafayette Ave. location. 

The Park Slope store is one of five unionized Starbucks locations in the city to be closed. Partners at the Park Slope store unionized to address labor conditions and bargain for wage increases and guaranteed hours. Now, the store is set to close on Jan. 30 in a sudden move by Starbucks who failed to follow protocol and bargain with their unionized workers before making the decision. 

Several baristas and allies spoke at the event, asking Starbucks to work with their unionized partners and  encouraging baristas to keep fighting. Councilmember Shahana Hanif (D-39) was in attendance and shared words of support with the strikers. 

“It is shameful that Starbucks has decided to shut down this location as opposed to coming back to the table and saying, ‘How can we make sure that you stay with us,’” Hanif said. “To Starbucks we say, do what’s right, stop silencing workers, exploiting workers, pay up now and provide benefits so that you can continue serving New Yorkers and cities everywhere.” 

Hanif added, “Your councilmembers, the entire city council stands with you all, and we’re always going to be on the right side of history. We’ll support workers.” 

Strikers outside of the store protested the pay gap between Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol and the average employee with a visual representation by holding up three full trays of coffee beans next to a palms-worth of espresso. The demonstrators shared that Starbucks had promised a raise of 1.5% for the subsequent years, which is close to 30 cents an hour for most Starbucks workers — a pittance compared to Niccol’s salary of $150,000 in an hour, according to Starbucks Workers United.

Many of the Park Slope baristas are transferring to other locations, but the closure of the store still brings disruption to their livelihoods. 

“To finally come in and try an avenue where we can fight for ourselves and have that be taken away from us, to have our whole entire job be taken away from us, is really discouraging,” said Samuel Schachter who has been with the company since June 2023. “We built a team here, it’s like a family and we support a community and we’ve been here for decades. Not only is Starbucks losing the store, but it’s losing the community that relied on this store not just for coffee.” 

Niccol has reportedly made it one of his goals to recapture the Starbucks “coffee house vibe,” and Eisen says that the Park Slope store has exactly that. 

“I walked in there and I immediately was transported back to 2003, meeting my friends at our local Starbucks and getting a chai latte. It is exactly what they want,” Eisen said. “It seems like the community is heartbroken that this is being closed; the workers are certainly heartbroken. I don’t see a justifiable reason for closing this location down — really for closing many of our locations down. I’m very sad for these workers and I think the company could do better by them and that’s what we want them to do.”