Starbucks cuts include hundreds of Seattle workers

Starbucks laid off 612 employees from its Seattle headquarters this week, part of companywide cuts that only affected corporate workers.

The Seattle-based coffee giant announced Monday that it was shrinking its corporate ranks and would lay off 1,100 employees and eliminate hundreds of open roles. Cafe workers were not affected.

More than half of those layoffs were in the company’s Sodo-neighborhood headquarters, according to a notice filed with the state’s Employment Security Department on Thursday. Starbucks will provide current pay and benefits through May 2, but employees were let go this week.

CEO Brian Niccol said in a letter to employees Monday that the moves were a “necessary change to position Starbucks for future success.” The company was mostly “removing layers and duplication and creating smaller, more nimble teams,” Niccol said.

The cuts are part of Niccol’s turnaround plan for Starbucks, which he’s dubbed “Back to Starbucks.” Other efforts in the campaign include remodeled cafes, simpler pricing structures and fewer drinks.

Despite a hybrid work policy that requires employees to work in person three days per week, workers were not expected to work from the office this week unless told otherwise by their team leaders.

Niccol’s letter signaled tighter enforcement for in-person requirements. Starbucks isn’t changing its in-office policy, which requires most workers to be in the office three days a week unless they have remote status. But Starbucks is revoking that permission for executives at the vice president level and above.

Employees at the director level and below who currently have remote status will keep it, but future hires will be required to be based in Seattle or Toronto.

Niccol is based in Newport Beach, Calif., where he resides and travels to the Sodo headquarters as well as other offices and stores when required. When he was hired last year, Starbucks included the use of a corporate jet for his commute to Seattle and other business travel in his offer letter, according to a regulatory filing from August. He’s also eligible for up to $250,000 worth of personal travel on the company’s aircraft.

Last year, Niccol incurred $72,398 in expenses related to his use of Starbucks’ aircraft for traveling between Newport Beach and Seattle, according to a Jan. 24 regulatory filing. Another $19,367 in expenses was related to his personal use of the aircraft.

Starbucks has roughly 361,000 employees worldwide. About 16,000 of those employees are in corporate support roles, which include roasting, manufacturing, warehouse and distribution workers who will not be affected by layoffs.

The company had about 3,750 employees based at its Sodo headquarters as of 2023.

Were you or someone you know affected by this week’s corporate layoffs at Starbucks? Tell us about it by filling out the form below, or visit this link.