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Starbucks CEO pleads staff to return to the office

By Nithya Bose in Employment News, posted June 14, 2022

Starbucks' CEO has urged staff to come back to the office, saying staff are not returning "at the level" he wants.

Howard Schultz says he has tried "everything" to get them to come to work, but staff are still resisting.

Schultz, who took over as interim CEO in April after Kevin Johnson stepped down, said convincing employees to return back from remote work hasn't been fruitful.

Schultz, who is set to step down next year, said: "I have been unsuccessful, despite everything I've tried to do, to get our people back to work. I've pleaded with them. I said I'll get on my knees. I'll do push-ups. Whatever you want. Come back."

"No, they are not coming back at the level I want them to. And, you know, we're a very collaborative, creative group. I realize I'm an old-school person, and this is a different generation."

Despite his dissatisfaction, Schultz has not ordered those corporate employees to work from the office.

Instead, hybrid and remote opportunities were provided as "flexible options for eligible, non-retail roles."

The company website states: "Hybrid workplace options depend on the individual role and are identified in our job postings.”

"Roles that do not have to be based in a specific location are labeled as 'remote' while roles that can be fulfilled in multiple locations, such as a combination of home and office, are indicated as 'hybrid.'"

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Schultz's reluctance to mandate full-time office work to Starbucks employees contradicts recent attempts by other CEOs, notably Elon Musk, who demanded employees return to the office or leave.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has openly criticized remote work, saying that workers who do not want to work in the office "should pretend to work somewhere else."

Schultz appeared to acquiesce to the concept of hybrid and remote work alternatives, noting at the Washington event that, while he personally walked into the office at 7 a.m. and departed at 7 p.m. on a daily basis, flexible workplaces are now "the way it is."

Source: Business Insider

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