Image Courtesy of Starbucks
May 16, 2025
How Strict Should Starbucks’ Barista Dress Code Be?
More than 2,000 Starbucks baristas at 120 U.S. stores went on strike this week in protest of a new dress code, according to Starbucks Workers United, a union representing the coffee giant’s U.S. workers.
The new dress code, which went into effect May 12, limits what workers can wear under the green aprons to a solid black shirt and khaki, black, or blue denim pants. Previously, baristas could wear any colored shirt as well as a wider range of pant colors, including brown, navy, and gray. Two free black shirts are being given to every employee.
Starbucks Workers United said the new “conservative dress code” is restricting the gender expression of employees.
“Starbucks workers are racially diverse, disabled, queer, and trans,” the union said in a statement in April. “We need a dress code that allows us to show up as our full selves at work.”
In a later statement, the union stressed that it was not just protesting over a shirt color but argued that the move should have been subject to collective bargaining.
“They refuse to staff our stores properly, give guaranteed hours to workers, pay us a living wage, or provide stipends to pay for this arbitrary dress code,” the union said. “Starbucks needs to fulfill their legal obligation and bargain with union workers over all policy changes — including the enforcement of this new, regressive dress code.”
Starbucks Workers United, which has been unionizing U.S. stores since 2021, claims to represent about 11,000 workers at 570 of the 10,000 Starbucks-owned U.S. stores. The two sides have yet to reach a contract agreement, despite agreeing to return to the bargaining table in February 2024.
The new dress code comes as Starbucks’ recently hired CEO Brian Niccol, formerly at Chipotle, has launched a “Back to Starbucks” mission aimed at reviving sales growth, which includes returning to its roots as a community fixture.
Starbucks said in a statement on the dress code change that the shift supports a “more consistent coffeehouse experience” across locations, particularly calling out the green apron that’s been a fixture inside cafes since 1987 to create “a sense of familiarity for our customers.”
According to USA Today, in a statement this week in response to the strikes, Starbucks said that less than 1% of locations participated in Workers United’s “attempts to cause disruption.”
“While the union is focused on a simplified dress code, we’re focused on providing the best job in retail with a wage and benefits package that averages more than $30 per hour for hourly partners. It would be more productive if the union would put the same effort into coming back to the table to finalize a reasonable contract,” Starbucks said.
Starbucks’ move comes as companies in general have been embracing more-relaxed dress codes in recent years to support recruiting in a tighter labor market and as younger workers seek more casual styling at work.
Discussion Questions
Will Starbucks’ dress code changes be beneficial enough for customers, or is it asking too much of baristas?
Have dress-code guidelines across retail and food establishments become too relaxed?
Poll
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Starbucks owns the business; it is up to Starbucks to set the policy. If unions want to set the policy, they should establish their own company. And I actually don’t think the request is too onerous, especially when Starbucks are offering free shirts to employees and there is still flexibility in what can be worn. That said, while a stricter dress code does improve standards, it must be done alongside other things to improve the experience – to be fair, Starbucks is working on this.
This, in ten words, is why people hate unions. My advice: take this java and ***** it!
Mandating a black top is an easy ask. Associates can express themselves in any way they want, as long as the top is black. I don’t see a problem.
You know, if a big problem is that your business is commodifying (and Starbucks is) while remaining overpriced, putting every employee in the same clothes just emphasizes the sea of sameness. Eclectic is in. There is nothing eclectic about today’s Starbucks. So, I rated it an F as there are bigger fish to fry. Trader Joe’s has similar dress standards for its employees. Do I notice? I wouldn’t. I’m more apt to notice the impossible parking lots, great products and generally happy employees.
so I think the focus is all wrong. Sorry
My big focus at Starbucks is hoping that the coffee I ordered on the mobile app is there and actually IS what I ordered… All for creative expression as long as the job is done well!
Every business has the right to implement a dress code that represents their brand. Requiring baristas to wear black shirts under their green aprons is not asking too much.
A great many retail companies have standard uniforms. The pay is well and benefits are exceptional. Not a lot to ask.
Great benefits and opportunities to grow into other jobs around the company.
First, I will tell you that I love Starbucks, and I get coffee there twice every day, and Howard Schultz is someone I respect and adore. But the employees are acting like immature brats. There are thousands of jobs where employees need to wear the brand’s outfits while at work, and Starbucks certainly provides a brand, and class of service, where standard clothing should be expected.
Lots of people want good jobs, and Starbucks is a great employer, and I hope these spoiled brats leave and go work somewhere else where they get to make the company’s marketing and operations decisions.
Perfect! “Immature brats.”
Employees have a choice. They don’t have to work where they don’t like the “rules.” A dress code, especially the one Starbucks is requiring, is not outside the boundaries of normal. Starbucks is trying to bring some order to a company that has been (and may still) going through a reverse transition that gets them back to the roots of what made them successful. If a stricter dress code is part of that, then so be it.
Such an overreaction to Starbucks tightening up what had evolved into a tattered, undisciplined brand. Many of us remember working frontlines in retail or restaurants, wearing a single color shirt and pants. Starbucks allowing three different pant styles/colors is more than generous. And black is nice, always a fashionable shirt color, works for just about everyone.
If this is too much of a hardship, there are jobs at dozens of independent coffee shops in any given trade area with little to no dress code.
I find it interesting that those of us that do not wish to be judged by how we look care so much about how we look. I find it even more interesting that one can claim to be an individual while part of organizations that have conformist elements.
The power of an individual is between the ears, in the heart and in the soul and it is not determined by superficial trappings. The character of a person is evident in how that person treats others and how that person treats the many environments in which that persons exists. It has little to do with uniforms, suits, ties, tattoos, piercings or anything else.
And yes, we’ve gone too far and dress codes are just one symptom of a movement that appears to be committed to demolishing the pillars of individuality: self-reliance, self-responsibility and self-determination. There appears to be a fixation on preparing the world for the individual instead of preparing the individual for the world. We need to make the world better but we must create individuals that can exist, survive and excel in a world that can be cruel and unfair.
And no, it’s not asking too much of baristas. As individuals, we all have choices. They’re not always easy and many of us have had to swallow our pride a time or two but we’ve emerged better individuals for it. Unions are for-profit, private interests that should be viewed with the same critical eye that they cast upon for-profit companies. Unfettered interests of any kind are dangerous to our collective and individual selves.
The situation surrounding Starbucks’ dress code highlights the complex relationship between brand identity, corporate culture, and labor relations in today’s retail environment.
Starbucks’ rationale for the change aligns with new CEO Brian Niccol’s “Back to Starbucks” mission. However, the implementation of this dress code appears disconnected from current workplace dynamics. This change has become a symbol of broader tensions between employees and the company, particularly as it seems dismissive of the fact that “less than 1% of locations participated in Workers United’s attempts to cause disruption.” This approach risks further alienating staff.
For retailers observing this situation, the key takeaway isn’t necessarily about dress codes but rather about how policy changes are implemented, especially during labor negotiations. The controversy emphasizes the importance of balancing brand consistency with employee autonomy, especially as Gen Z workers increasingly value authentic self-expression in the workplace.
A wage and benefit package of over $30 an hour…?!? May I have a black t-shirt and a green apron…PLEASE…??? Memo to the union. Get a grip.
Remember the days of hair style requirements? No piercings? No tattoos? Pantyhose required with skirts? There are many more ways to clamp down on dress code than a black top, two of which are provided.
And do you seriously think this is going to improve Starbucks business? Please
Quite a bit of debate and uproar over a simple black shirt, isn’t it? On the one hand, you might think Starbucks was asking employees to buy multiple shirts in an expensive, hard to find fabric, in three wildly divergent colors. But the requirement is “a solid black shirt”. There is clearly room for creativity here. In fact, the “black shirt” is likely something you can find the most options in almost any apparel store.
That said, you also have to wonder if this is a worthwhile battle to fight over. For Starbucks, to the union. Will black shirts make such a big difference in customer experience that customers come back inside their local Starbucks in droves?
I doubt it.
In fact, I suspect if you ask most Starbucks customers if they have difficulty identifying who the employees are due to a lack of uniform, I doubt you’ll find many responses that say, “oh my yes! if only they all wore the same shirt I’d know who to give my coffee order to!”
So while I normally am not opposed to Starbucks workers joining unions, and generally I commend them for trying to make a better work environment for their members, this does seem like a totally contrived point of contention by the union, which gives the impression they are desperate to find a bargaining point with corporate. Just by reading the union’s social post you can tell that this is just giving them reason to state their grievances more loudly than normal. It’s not about black t-shirts.
Starbucks’ dress code changes are reasonable. It seems like the dress code isn’t workers’ core complaint, it’s just the latest one. For years, other issues have been building into resentments among some Starbucks workers amid lean store teams and operational complexity. Employees’ anger may actually stem from feeling unheard.
It’s a T-shirt and they are getting two free ones. Get over it.