More than 150 Starbucks stores to strike over Pride decor, union says

• Last week the union had lambasted company leadership for reportedly banning Pride decorations in stores.
• Starbucks disputed the accusation in a statement, saying the union had "knowingly, and recklessly, spread false information" and that there had been no change to company policy regarding Pride month decorations.
• In a letter last week to Workers United President Lynne Fox, Starbucks' vice president of partner resources May Jensen condemned the union's "blatant fear mongering campaign."

State of play: Starbucks Workers United alleged earlier this week that internal documents and testimonies from store managers showed Starbucks' "inconsistent" responses to questions about Pride decor.

• The union last week shared a testimonial from a worker in a non-unionized Starbucks store in Minnesota claiming their store manager had received an email from the district manager instructing them not to display "decorations from Pride or any other holiday."

What they're saying: "Workers United continues to spread false information about our benefits, policies and negotiation efforts—a tactic used to seemingly divide our partners and deflect from their failure to respond to bargaining sessions for more than 200 stores," Starbucks spokesperson Rachel Wall said in a statement.

• Fewer than a dozen stores had reported strikes Friday morning, according to the company.

Zoom out: This is the latest dispute between Starbucks and Starbucks Workers United, which has accused the coffee company of illegal firings and interfering with workers' rights.

Editor's note: This story was updated with a response from Starbucks.