Starbucks workers at 3 New York stores get green light to vote on union

Workers hoping to unionize Starbucks stores in the U.S. have won a preliminary victory before the National Labor Relations Board.

Workers at three Starbucks coffee shops in the Buffalo area filed petitions in August with the NLRB asking for a vote on union representation. Employees at the Starbucks stores told the New York Times in August that they are seeking to address chronic problems such as understaffing, unpredictable scheduling and insufficient training.

The NLRB said employees at three separate Starbucks stores in Buffalo, New York, can hold union elections in November in a new ruling. The board rejected Starbucks' attempt to hold a single vote with 20 stores in the region.