Steve White, a former Starbucks manager, is suing Starbucks; he says he and other managers who worked in California stores are owed “unpaid wages plus interest and compensation for working “off the clock” and missing meal and rest periods.”

This suit comes after another lawsuit — settled in April 2002 — that accused Starbucks of “wrongly classifying its managers [in California] as being exempt from overtime.” More than 1,000 managers in Starbucks’ Californias joined in the suit; Starbucks agreed to pay as much as $18 million — and Starbucks’ managers are now paid hourly.

Now, the current suit — which seeks class action status — alleges that “supervisors weren’t paid overtime and were forced to work through meal breaks,” violating state and federal law. In California, employees who work more than 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week should be paid overtime.

In other recent labor disputes, Starbucks settled with NYC baristas for alleged union busting, and faced strikes in New Zealand from baristas asking for better wages. BTW — The Starbucks Barista Union in NYC backs an increase in Starbucks’ commitment to fair trade.

[Thanks to Larry for the tip]

Update, 8/15/06: Starbucks fires another union organizer.

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