Tip policy remains at Starbucks after suit

SEATTLE, March 28 (UPI) -- Starbucks Chief Executive Howard Schultz said the company would not change its tip-pooling policy even after losing a $100 million lawsuit in California.

Schultz made the statement in a voice mail to thousands of employees Wednesday, saying the court ruling was "extremely unfair and beyond reason."

"I could go on and on about how wrong I think it is," he said.

A San Diego court ruled that Starbucks's policy of including shift managers in the distribution of tips was illegal. The court ordered Starbucks to return $100 million in lost tips to current and former baristas.

Starbucks will appeal the decision, the company said, but since the ruling, baristas in Massachusetts and Minnesota have filed similar suits. Employees in other states are considering suits, as well, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported Friday.

A spokeswoman for the coffee shop chain said Starbucks does not decide how tips are divided.

Stacey Krum also said the tip-sharing policy would continue until the appeal was decided.