Starbucks Closing Stores To Educate Employees On Racial Bias

Don't expect to get your afternoon caffeine fix from Starbucks on May 29. The chain announced this week it will be closing all of its stores nationwide on that day for racial-bias education geared toward preventing discrimination at its stores.

The decision to conduct the training comes after an employee called the police on two black men who were sitting in a Philadelphia Starbucks store earlier this month, despite having done nothing wrong. Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson has since called the arrests "reprehensible."

On May 29, Starbucks employees will undergo training "to address implicit bias, promote conscious inclusion, prevent discrimination and ensure everyone inside a Starbucks store feels safe and welcome," the company said.

Nearly 175,000 employees will participate, and the training will become part of the onboarding process for new hires, Starbucks said.

"I've spent the last few days in Philadelphia with my leadership team listening to the community, learning what we did wrong and the steps we need to take to fix it," Johnson said in a statement. "While this is not limited to Starbucks, we're committed to being a part of the solution. Closing our stores for racial bias training is just one step in a journey that requires dedication from every level of our company and partnerships in our local communities."

The curriculum will be developed with the help of national and local experts on confronting racial bias, including officials from the NAACP, the Anti-Defamation League and the Equal Justice Initiative, along with former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder.

The employee who called police on the men no longer works at Starbucks. The men were released and the Philadelphia Police commissioner has apologized.

Photo: PHILADELPHIA, PA - APRIL 15: Protestor Jack Willis, 26, (C) demonstrates outside a Starbucks on April 15, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Police arrested two black men who were waiting inside a Center City Starbucks which prompted an apology from the company's CEO. (Photo by Mark Makela/Getty Images)