photo by: Cynthia Hernandez/Journal-World

Striking Starbucks workers cheer as honking cars drive by Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, outside the store at 23rd Street and Ousdahl Road in Lawrence.

Honking horns, cheers and yells of “Merry Strike-mas!” broke through the cold Tuesday as local Starbucks workers joined a nationwide strike effort from their store at the corner of 23rd Street and Ousdahl Road.

“They actually didn’t even open, because we told our manager night-of that we were going on strike,” said Sage Joy, who believes her store is the only one in the district affiliated with Starbucks Workers United. The store was the only Lawrence location listed as closed on the Starbucks website Tuesday afternoon.

Strike captain RJ Davenport said the gathering, which began at 8 a.m. on Christmas Eve and was expected to continue until noon, was part of a “rolling strike” of events across the country.

“Today’s the day where we’re all striking together,” Davenport said.

photo by: Cynthia Hernandez/Journal-World

Strike captain RJ Davenport, from right, holds signs with Kaitlyn George, Mariah Robinson, Finnegan Buchanan, Allica Henry and Hayden Cannon outside of the Starbucks at 23rd Street and Ousdahl Road on Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2024, in Lawrence, Kansas.

According to The Associated Press, workers are protesting a lack of progress in contract negotiation with the company. Starbucks Workers United, which began the unionization effort in 2021, said Starbucks has failed to honor a commitment made in February to reach a labor agreement this year.

The two side have been bargaining since the spring but appear to have reached an impasse over economic issues. Starbucks said it has committed to an annual pay increase of 1.5% or more for unionized workers. With benefits — including health care, free college tuition and paid family leave — Starbucks’ pay package is worth an average of $30 per hour for baristas who work at least 20 hours per week, the company said.

Workers say they deserve more, and note that Starbucks’ new chairman and CEO, Brian Niccol, who started in September, could make more than $100 million in his first year on the job.

– Associated Press business writer Dee-Ann Durbin contributed to this report.