New Starbucks CEO Laxman Narasimhan officially took over the reins on Monday, nearly two weeks before his previously announced official start date of April 1. Narasimhan is succeeding interim CEO Howard Schultz, who returned to serve as CEO in March 2022 as the coffee chain was battling unionization efforts.
Narasimhan was the former CEO of U.K.-based consumer-products company Reckitt Benckiser Group.
- He joined Starbucks in September 2022 and worked alongside Schultz, learning Starbucks’ culture and operations.
- In the last 18 months, pro-union Starbucks employees have been pushing to organize, saying it was necessary to secure better pay and working conditions.
- The National Labor Relations (NLRB) Board has certified unions at 288 Starbucks locations.
- The coffee chain has about 9,300 locations in the U.S.
- The NLRB has accused Starbucks of breaking federal law in its efforts to prevent its employees from organizing.
