 We have a corporation worth some $113 billion, largely controlled by an individual worth some $4 billion, who are using their unlimited resources to do everything possible legal and illegal to deny these workers their constitutional right to form a union. The fundamental issue we are confronting today is whether we have a system of justice that applies to all, or whether billionaires and large corporations can break the law with impunity. I have read Mr. Schultz's comments to the media, in which he expresses his strong anti-union views, as an American Mr. Schultz is entitled to those views and any other views he holds. But even if he is a multi-billionaire and the head of a giant corporation, he is not entitled to break the law. You just watched a snippet of Chairman Bernie Sanders' opening statement to a Senate hearing where he and other senators finally had the opportunity to confront Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz about his company's vicious union-busting campaign. And this testimony comes after Schultz initially declined the Senate's invitation to testify, which is pretty bold to put it lightly. But after Sanders threatened to subpoena him, well, he begrudgingly showed up because he didn't really have a choice. It was either show up now or get subpoenaed and be forced to show up. Now we're going to get to Bernie Sanders' direct questioning of him, but I first want to play a little bit more of the opening statement because it really is just outstanding. And Bernie Sanders here does not mince words in calling out their union-busting tactics. Over the past 18 months, Starbucks has waged the most aggressive and illegal union-busting campaign in the modern history of our country. That union-busting campaign has been led by Howard Schultz, the multi-billionaire founder and director of Starbucks, who is with us this morning only under the threat of subpoena. Let us be clear about the nature of Starbucks' vicious anti-union efforts. The National Labor Relations Board, NLRB, has filed over 80 complaints against Starbucks for violating federal labor law. There have been over 500 unfair labor practice charges lodged against the company, and judges have found that Starbucks broke the law 130 times across six states since workers began organizing in the fall of 2021. These violations include the illegal firing of more than a dozen Starbucks workers for the crime of exercising their right to form a union and collectively bargain for better wages, benefits, and working conditions. Since the first Starbucks union was certified more than 450 days ago in Buffalo, workers at more than 360 stores across 40 states have held union elections. 83% of these elections have resulted in a union victory, and today nearly 300 Starbucks coffee shops employing more than 7,000 workers have a union, despite Starbucks' aggressive anti-union efforts. But with nearly 300 shops voting to form a union, Starbucks has refused to sign a single first contract with the union, not a single one. Think about that. Think about a multi-billion-dollar company with unlimited resources, with all kinds of lawyers, advisors, consultants, and yet they have not yet signed one contract with any of their nearly 300 unionized shops. Just a few weeks ago on March 1, an administrative law judge found Starbucks guilty of, quote, egregious and widespread misconduct, end quote, which showed, quote, a general disregard for the employee's fundamental rights, end quote. In a 220-page ruling, this judge found that Starbucks illegally retaliated against employees for unionizing, promised improved pay and benefits if workers rejected the union, conducted illegal surveillance of pro-union workers, refused to hire prospective employees who supported the union, relocated union organizers to new stores, and overstaffed stores ahead of union votes, all clear violations of federal labor law. The judge also found that Starbucks, quote, widespread coercive behavior over six months had permeated every store in the Buffalo marketing, quote. The judge ordered Starbucks to reinstate seven workers who were wrongfully terminated, reopen a pro-union store in Buffalo that was illegally shut down, and pay, quote, reasonable consequential damages, end quote, to more than two dozen Starbucks workers whose rights were violated by the company. And let us be clear, Starbucks egregious union-busting campaign is not limited to Buffalo. It is happening all over America. So expectedly, Bernie Sanders brought the heat. Now in anticipation of Howard Schultz playing dumb or obfuscating or downplaying his role in the company's aggressive union-busting, Bernie Sanders released this 13-page document outlining every single instance of the company's illegal union-busting tactics, coercive behavior, and lies the company has spread to repair their image as a good liberal company after going scorched earth against their own employees. But regardless of how incriminating this all looks, Howard Schultz seemingly did not break under pressure, unlike other CEOs who are grilled by U.S. senators. And he denied that Starbucks broke the law, which is an absurd claim to make. And Senator Sanders even had to remind him that you're under oath. So if you are knowingly lying, you could be charged with perjury. But despite that, Howard Schultz didn't really seem bothered at all. So let's watch Bernie Sanders directly question Howard Schultz. Do you understand that in America, workers have a fundamental right to join a union and collectively bargain to improve wages, benefits, and working conditions? Do you understand that? I understand, and we respect the right of every partner who wears a green apron whether they choose to join a union or not. Are you aware that NLRB judges have ruled that Starbucks violated federal labor law over 100 times during the past 18 months, far more than any other corporation in America? Sir, Starbucks Coffee Company unequivocally, and let me set the tone for this very early on, has not broken the law. Okay. Are you aware that on March 1st, 2023, an administrative law judge found Starbucks guilty of, quote, egregious and widespread misconduct, end quote, widespread coercive behavior, and showed, quote, a general disregard for the employee's fundamental rights, end quote, in a union organizing campaign that started in Buffalo, New York in 2021. Are you aware of that? I'm aware that those are allegations, and Congress has created a process that we are following, and we're confident that those allegations will be proven false. All right. Mr. Schultz, before answering the following questions, let me remind you that federal law at 18 U.S. Code Section 1001 prohibits knowingly and willfully making any fraudulent statement. I understand that. Were you ever informed of or involved in a decision to fire a worker who was part of a union organizing drive? I was not. Were you ever informed of or involved in a decision to discipline a worker in any way who was part of a union organizing drive? I was not. Have you ever threatened, coerced, or intimidated a worker for supporting a union? I've had conversations that could have been interpreted in a different way than I intended. This up to the person who received the information that I spoke to him about. Will you commit to testifying in any trial where you personally are accused of breaking federal labor law, something that you have been accused of doing nearly 100 times since 2021? Mr. Chairman, let me say under oath, these are allegations, and Starbucks has not broken the law. Words cannot describe how much I hate Howard Schultz. He just oozes smugness and very clearly has a superiority complex. And he's a rich man in the United States of America, so who can blame him? I mean, how often do we see rich people be held accountable for breaking the law? Worst case scenario, what he gets a slap on the wrist for illegal union busting or even committing perjury, he knows nothing is going to happen to him, hence the confidence there. Now that back and forth between him and Bernie Sanders continued for a while. Sanders asked him whether or not he complied or plans to comply with orders from the NLRB and whether or not he'll commit to negotiating with the more than 300 stores that voted to form a union. But rather than focusing on that because it doesn't really go anywhere, Howard Schultz doesn't break. I want to look at Ed Markey's testimony because he spends a significant chunk of time just badgering Schultz. And you can tell specifically towards the end of the clip that it was really getting under Schultz's skin. And this is a longer clip, but it's worth the watch. I got the chance this week to meet with Caitlyn, who is a Starbucks employee from Gardner, Massachusetts. Like you, Caitlyn cares deeply about Starbucks. She originally started working for the company in 2006 and came back to rejoin Starbucks in 2021. When she came back, she saw Starbucks similar to how you describe it in your testimony, a company that had lost its way. She saw a company that now only cared about money at the expense of the health and well being of its workers. So to help save the Starbucks she once knew and loved, Caitlyn and her coworkers formed a union. They wanted to revive a wayward company, make your company better. But you vilify Caitlyn and her colleagues for caring. You demonize them for participating in their fundamental right to organize. And worse, you and your company set out to punish Caitlyn and her colleagues, withholding benefits and raises, cutting hours and purposefully, understaffing to harm their most dedicated partners. So when you give us 10 pages of testimony extolling the benefits that Starbucks offers its employees, that's not what I see. I see Caitlyn. I see you squeezing the people who have made you rich with blatant disregard for the law, perhaps because you think if you can hire the lawyers and pay the union-busting consulting firms, you can get away with violating other people's rights, with disregarding their dignity and with silencing working people in America. But here's the thing. If you can pay the lawyers and the consultants and the PR specialists, you can also pay the workers a fair wage. So you say that your father was unfairly fired after he was injured on the job. Your father had no rights, and your family paid the price. That is how your workers now feel. Can I respond, sir? 30 seconds. Only 30 seconds. I need more time for that. I'm sorry, that's all every member here is going to say. Bring up my father. You don't understand, sir. My father was a World War II veteran, fought for this country in the South Pacific. You don't understand. I understand completely. Your father was... Can I finish, sir? Yes, sure. Your father served our country, and then the company he worked for... Can I respond, Chairman? Yes. Okay. I don't understand. Let me ask you a question, since you cited the union as the answer. Is there a union contract that you personally are aware of that provides comprehensive health insurance, equity in the form of stock option? Free college tuition. Is there at $17.50 and an average of $27 with benefits? Are you aware of a union contract... Sir, answer the question of a union contract that has those benefits, sir? Mr. Schultz. Are you aware? Mr. Schultz, here's your testimony. Looking back... I'll ask you a question. Looking back, it is clear that prior to my return last April, the company had lost its way. I asked you a question. Mr. Schultz, this is the dangerous influence of Wall Street shot termism that I had always tried to... I asked you a question, sir. You don't understand. Your testimony says that your own company lost its way, and it will lose its way again unless there's a union there to make... Senator Hassan. Thank you. Thank you. Senator Hassan. In your most COVID environment, many, many companies... Mr. Schultz. Mr. Schultz. Senator Hassan, please. You don't understand. That was incredible. How dare you question me, the great Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks, worth billions of dollars. Look, dude, like all of us, you shit, you eat, even if we have a capitalistic society that props up people like you, your shit still stinks. So they don't like remembering that, like all of us, they're just human beings, right? So when you challenge them, though, after they've been surrounded by yes men and yes women for years, potentially decades, that's what happens. They melt down because they just can't tolerate any level of scrutiny. Now, it's interesting the excuse that he used for not supporting unions. He honestly believes, and many companies do, that existing benefits and comparatively higher pay is a solid defense for his company's union busting or a solid alternative to unionization altogether. But this is what companies say to convince workers that a union is unnecessary and more and more workers are finding out that this line is bullshit. And the reason why folks like Howard Schultz are against unions is because as much as he claims he's paying his workers, he knows that workers would be paid more and treated better if they had unions. And what's a little bit ironic is that in the middle of Starbucks' union busting campaign, as they retaliate against their employees exercising their constitutional rights, they end up unwittingly demonstrating why unions are so important in the first place, because these companies don't give a shit about their employees. They will chew them up and spit them out. The second it's convenient to them. So as much as they claim that they care about their employees, well, you don't care enough to not retaliate against them for doing what they are constitutionally permitted to do. So in the end, it was satisfying to watch Howard Schultz get grilled for sure. But there were, of course, Republican senators who tried to run interference for him, Mitt Romney being one of them, who also is a multi-millionaire with an elevator in his mansion for his cars. You had Mark Wayne Mullen go back and forth with Bernie Sanders saying that Bernie Sanders is demonizing rich people and Bernie Sanders is a millionaire himself. There was even a moment where Howard Schultz claimed that Bernie Sanders was using the word or he implied that Bernie was using the word billionaire as a sort of pejorative. So there was a lot. There was some fireworks, but I wanted to show you the most substantive portions where Howard Schultz was directly confronted for his company's lawbreaking. So even though you had some Republican senators try to run interference for Howard Schultz, at the end of the day, they're going to be the ones that look out of touch because, quite frankly, the masses just aren't falling for this pro-rich propaganda any longer. It is obvious to everyone that meritocracy does not exist. It's obvious that the American dream is dead. And what's left is a population increasingly desperate to finally get what they believe is owed to them. Fair treatment, fair employment. And these CEOs should honestly be thankful that workers are only demanding unions because with how poorly American workers have been treated for decades now, it's a surprise that they haven't broken out the pitchforks.