Posted on 02/02/2017 2:03:09 PM PST by Ciaphas Cain
Following is a message to customers from Starbucks Armed Forces Network, an internal veteran group with more than 14 chapters across the country. They provide an additional layer of support for veterans, spouses and any Starbucks partner (employee) wanting to show support for those who have served the country.
Dear Starbucks customers,
We write to you today as representatives of the thousands of veterans and spouses who currently work for Starbucks Coffee Company, and to express our gratitude for your business as well as to address misinformation that has been circulating since our company announced their commitment to hire 10,000 refugees around the world.
Starbucks has received an outpouring of support for the actions our CEO Howard outlined. The company has also received criticism. While much of this discussion has been healthy debate, the false and inaccurate statements about Starbucks commitment to hiring veterans and spouses are deeply troubling to those of us who served. We’ve seen first-hand the hard work and dedication of our fellow employees to transform Starbucks into one of the preeminent veteran-friendly companies in America.
We the veterans of Starbucks would like to set the record straight.
As our armed forces drew down in 2013, veterans at Starbucks asked the company to consider hiring more service members as they transitioned from active duty and sought their first civilian job. We also asked the company to extend this effort to military spouses because we knew first-hand that their support made our service possible.
In November 2013, Howard and former Secretary of Defense Bob Gates announced Starbucks commitment to hire 10,000 veterans and military spouses over the next five years.
Perhaps more importantly, our boss not only launched this initiative but he inspired the company to become one of the leading corporate veteran advocates and supporters.
Howard and his wife Sheri visited military bases to get to know our nation’s service members. They poured substantial personal financial resources into their own family foundation to design plans for transitioning service members. Starbucks established military family stores at over 30 bases around the country. Howard encouraged Starbucks senior leaders to visit our military bases and get to know our military on a personal level, knowing it would lead them to hire more veterans and their spouses. And much, much more.
Less than four years into the commitment, Starbucks has hired over 8,800 veterans and spouses and counting.
Without question we will reach the 10,000 goal early, and we will keep going. None of this would have been possible without our boss’s very personal commitment. Howard didn’t just authorize our veteran initiative, he led it.
And so you can imagine our reaction when we read criticism of our company and of our CEO suggesting that instead of a commitment to refugees, we should instead hire 10,000 veterans.
We respect honest debate and the freedom of expression. Many of us served to protect that very right. Some of our brothers and sisters died protecting it. But to those who would suggest Starbucks is not committed to hiring veterans, we are here to say: check your facts, Starbucks is already there.
We want to thank you as our customers for your business. Without your support, our veterans initiatives are not possible. Every day, there are thousands of veterans, reservists and military spouses working at Starbucks stores serving you. You can find many of us proudly wearing American flags emblazoned upon our green aprons. And we look forward to continuing to serve you in the days, months and years to come.
With great respect,
The Men and Women of Starbucks Armed Forces Network (AFN)
Good bye Starbucks...good luck with those immigrants. I’ve never seen a
Veteran working in one of your stores. They must have to keep it a secret.
Most Starbucks people I see look like HS kids......................
I don’t like their coffee and I sure don’t like their politics. America and Americans first!
Starbucks has hired over 8,800 veterans and spouses
______________________________________
so how many were veterans ???
But not anymore! They like non-citizens now.
Overpriced java. McCafe is as good or better at much lower prices.
Starbucks Armed Forces Network (AFN)
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if theyre suppose to be veterans why are they called “armed forces”
veterans aren’t in the armed forces...they no long serve in the military...
Probably liberals who used the military in some REMF job to get college money (or Air Force - yeah, I can say it, I was in the Air Force, lots of liberals in that branch even when I was in the late '80s-early '90s).
I agree. Hire 20,000 vets if you need that much help.
Hard to believe, really.
Remember when the Baristas were told to encourage their customers to talk about race, and wrote PC stuff on the coffee cups?
They’re just like Walmart. Publicly, they say that they support our nation’s veterans and are very much willing to employ them, but in reality, it’s just spewing feel-good crap.
Question might be: what if they can’t find 10,000 (much less 20,000) veterans willing to work there? They’ve only hit 8,800 and that’s including spouses.
If they need more employees, and they can’t get 10,000 willing veterans, and taking in refugees is (up to a point) fair, then look for 10,000 refugees - and find out the hard way whether they’re adequate.
I’m with you on this. It’s funny you should say this. The last time I was at McDonalds, a woman came in, bought some coffee and poured it into a Starbuck’s cup. All I could do is smirk.
Most of the “males” who work at Starbucks are lipstick wearing metrosexuals. They sure as heck don’t look like combat veterans.
It appears however that they are committed to hiring veterans from the Syrian civil war. Especially the ones who have been persecuting Christians and are coming here in hopes of instituting an Islamic Caliphate.
Glad to see their Berkeley store was vandalized by their ex and current crop of employees. I think that shop was the biggest recruiter of graduates from Berkeley with worthless liberal arts degrees and 6 figure student loans.
Maybe Starbucks should take the lead on the $15 minimum wage.
Me thinks they protest too much. Just because someone has served does not mean they are conservative and not flaming liberals. Starbucks CEO has clearly stated a liberal position so I don’t really care what these veterans have to say. Just because they are veterans does not change the liberal CEO support of immigrants (both legal and illegal). If the CEO wants to pander to immigrants and insert himself into current politics, then he opens himself to criticism and nothing these veterans say changes my opinion of him.
Have they welcomed back those who support “traditional marriage”yet? If not I won’t be buying. They stated that they did not want my business, so...
For the price of one of their lattes I can buy a whole pound of Krogers coffee and drink for a month.
This means Vets are just as important as refugees? How magnanimous.
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