Starbucks Set to Close Canadian Stores on June 11th for Implicit Bias Training

Starbucks will close all Canadian stores for an afternoon on June 11th to provide further training and to highlight Starbucks’ need to create “a culture of warmth and belonging.”  
Starbucks Set to Close Canadian Stores on June 11th for Implicit Bias Training

 

You may have heard about the situation Starbucks got themselves into last month. Recently, the Seattle-based company publicly apologized for the arrest of two black men who had been denied permission to use the washroom at a Starbucks coffee shop in Philidelphia.

The result was that Starbucks ordered more than 8,000 U.S. Starbucks stores to close at the end of the month so that 175,000 employees can receive training on unconscious bias.

With a commitment to improving the culture in U.S. stores, industry analysts speculated whether or not the training would make its way north of the border.

According to the Financial Post, Starbucks will close all Canadian stores for an afternoon on June 11th to provide further training and to highlight Starbucks’ need to create “a culture of warmth and belonging.”

The Financial Post reports that Starbucks Canada president Michael Conway sent a memo to store on Friday that indicated the closure on June 11th is for training to address implicit bias and to promote “conscious inclusion”

 

Starbucks Canada president Michael Conway sent a memo on Friday that schedules store and office closures for part of the afternoon on June 11 for a training session to address implicit bias and promote “conscious inclusion.”