Starbucks Raises Pay for Baristas Amid Climbing U.S. Wages

(Bloomberg) -- Starbucks Corp. announced a round of pay hikes for its baristas -- a sign the coffee giant is moving to get ahead of the rising wages in the U.S.

The company will raise wages by at least 10% for baristas, shift supervisors and cafe attendants that were hired on or before Sept. 14. The increase will go into effect on Dec. 14. Starting pay rates will rise 5% “so our store managers can continue to attract and retain new talent,” Starbucks Executive Vice President Rossann Williams said in a memo seen by Bloomberg.

The company will increase the premium it pays above the minimum wage in the markets it operates.

Restaurants are increasingly struggling to keep workers, even after unemployment spiked due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Since service-sector jobs now mean a higher chance of infection, even greater pay isn’t coaxing workers into the kitchen. In addition, wage pressure seems likely to continue rising: Florida recently approved higher minimum pay, while President-elect Joe Biden supported a $15 minimum wage in his campaign.

Early in the pandemic, Starbucks expanded emergency pay for store staff impacted by the coronavirus and extended it through May 31 for those diagnosed or directly exposed to Covid-19. It also provided temporary childcare and distance-learning support, as well as hardship grants for workers in financial difficulty because of the pandemic.

The company has offered sick pay to all store staff since July 2018 and also offers health care coverage to eligible U.S. workers. Non-store workers at the company’s Seattle support center have been instructed to work remotely until October 2021.

CNBC earlier reported Starbucks pay raise.

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