The Unionization Wave Is Now Hitting Chipotle

Chipotle workers in Lansing, Michigan, have organized the first-ever union at the company. Could Chipotle be the next Starbucks, with unionization efforts spreading like wildfire?

Chipotle workers in Lansing, Michigan, just formed the fast-food chain’s first recognized union in the United States. (Mike Mozart / Flickr)


Chipotle workers in Lansing, Michigan, formed the fast-food chain’s first recognized union in the United States, voting eleven-three on August 25 to join Teamsters Local 243. It’s the latest in a string of new organizing breakthroughs at prominent national brands, from Starbucks to Apple to Trader Joe’s to REI.

Of all the employers that have seen union drives over the past year, Chipotle — with 100,000 employees across three thousand stores and long-term plans to double its footprint in North America — is the most similar to Starbucks. They’re both outliers in fast food: their stores are primarily corporate-owned, rather than franchised out to smaller operators.

Though chains like Subway and McDonald’s have more total locations, Starbucks and Chipotle are two of just four fast food chains with more than one thousand company-operated locations. (The others are Panda Express and Arby’s.)

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