Mamdani stands with Starbucks workers as historic settlement arrives
The Red Cup Rebellion and New Leadership
On December 1, 2025–Mamdani’s final day before taking office as New York City mayor–one of the city’s most significant labor victories occurred. Starbucks agreed to pay over $35 million to more than 15,000 New York City workers, settling claims that the company systematically violated the city’s Fair Workweek Law. The timing was not coincidental. Mamdani stood with striking Starbucks workers outside a company location on the very day the settlement was announced, declaring that under his administration, “workers deserve a city that has their back.” The city’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection investigation found that Starbucks committed more than half a million violations of labor law since 2021.
