San Diego Woman's Story Prompts Overhaul of Starbucks Scheduling Policy

A San Diego barista is changing the way Starbucks schedules its employees.

On Wednesday, the New York Times ran an article about 22-year-old Jannette Navarro of San Diego. The single mother and Starbucks employee was struggling to raise her 4-year-old son with an irregular work schedule.

For instance, Navarro told the paper that she was once scheduled to work until 11 p.m. one night and had be back at 4 a.m. the next day. (A schedule with back-to-back closing and opening shifts has become known as a “clopening.”) Navarro would learn her schedule only a few days before the workweek began, according to the article.

Navarro said her erratic schedule was disrupting relationships with her family.

On Thursday, the Starbucks President of Americas Cliff Burrows wrote an email to the company’s partners, which is what Starbucks calls its employees. In the email obtained by NBC News, Burrows said he was “troubled” after reading Navarro’s story.

He outlined four changes to Starbucks' scheduling policy:

  • Starbucks will update its scheduling software to provide more stability and consistency.
  • Employees will never work a closing and opening shift back-to-back.
  • Schedules must be posted one week in advance.
  • If an employee’s commute is more than one hour, that person will be transferred to a Starbucks closer to his or her home.

The changes will take effect immediately, according to the email.

Starbucks is known for offering perks to its employees, such as health insurance and tuition assistance.

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