Starbucks, the coffee shop conglomerate, has been in recent news for its move to expand the number of locations that offer alcohol to its customers. Today, Starbucks finds itself in the news again as its CEO tells shareholders to sell if they believe in biblical marriage.
Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz stated that his company employs over 200,000 people and that it is important to embrace diversity of all persons. At a recent company stakeholders meeting in Seattle, Starbucks told those who favor and support marriage between one man and one woman, that they can sell their shares in Starbucks and buy shares in another company.
This is a daring move by the company, but Starbucks doesn’t seem too concerned. It was even mentioned at this same meting that Starbucks’ stance on same-sex marriage last year has affected shareholder earnings and has even resulted in boycotts against the company. With that being said, Starbucks still provided their shareholders with a 38% return last year. Now that’s a return that no investor can be mad at.
However, even with a great shareholder return, Starbucks has upset many people and sites like DumpStarbucks.com have been launched as a direct result of this.
Starbucks issued this statement, “Starbucks is proud to join other leading Northwest employers in support of Washington State legislation recognizing marriage equality for same-sex couples. We are deeply dedicated to embracing diversity and treating one another with respect and dignity, and remain committed to providing an inclusive, supportive and safe work environment for all of our partners.”
Follow us on Twitter @hiphopenquirer
