Recently, a former employee of a HEYTEA franchise store publicly shared on social media their experience of unfair employment treatment, quickly sparking heated discussion among netizens. The employee posted clock-in records and chat screenshots, pointing out that they had worked overtime for a long time without ever receiving overtime pay, but were instead deducted 700 yuan for being late, and the promised base salary did not match reality. More notably, the franchise store's autonomy in salary management made it difficult to protect employee rights, bringing the disparity in treatment between directly operated stores and franchise stores to the surface. This article summarizes the course of events and various viewpoints for reference by coffee industry practitioners. [more…]

In the coffee chain industry, standardized store operation management often brings additional execution pressure. Recently, some Luckin Coffee employees reported that in order to prepare for surprise inspections by the quality control department, night shift staff still have to stay after their regular shift to do deep cleaning, and if the inspection does not come the next day, the whole process must be repeated, with some even still busy in the store in the early morning. Since the March 31 incident, some stores have reduced staffing, and the closing tasks originally shared by two people have fallen on one person, yet overtime work rarely comes with corresponding overtime pay. In addition, the system keeps pushing clock-in reminders during off-duty hours, further increasing employees' anxiety. Some employees pointed out that when they leave their posts to count inventory, they are defaulted by surveillance as taking a break, causing their actual meal time to be invisibly encroached upon. Under the combined effect of various factors, unpaid overtime and working-hour calculation issues are becoming the main troubles for frontline employees. [more…]

Recently, a Luckin Coffee employee posted on social media complaining that the company's store-closing procedures are too cumbersome, requiring staff to take photos and videos to document materials, which leads to almost daily overtime without overtime pay. Multiple employees followed up confirming similar experiences, pointing out that the strict photo-taking is for food safety and shelf-life management, but the high frequency and insufficient staffing have intensified dissatisfaction. In addition, timeliness assessments also stretch employees thin. These issues have long been ignored by the company, leading to soaring employee resentment, rising turnover rates, and increasingly serious chain problems such as store understaffing and inadequate training. Luckin Coffee now has over 13,000 stores, and employees are calling on the company to face up to its management loopholes. [more…]

Recent subsidy promotions on major food delivery platforms have brought consumers tangible savings, with many taking advantage of low prices to stock up on milk tea, coffee, and light bakery items. However, this seemingly win-win promotional feast has stirred up considerable unrest within Luckin Coffee stores. A large number of consumers flocked to stores to buy light food in bulk, directly causing a surge in the number of baked goods that staff need to thaw each night—work that once took just over ten minutes now takes more than half an hour. What leaves employees even more frustrated is that the company has not only canceled performance commissions on light food sales but also requires them to complete thawing tasks strictly according to procedure after closing, forcing many to work unpaid overtime. The cost of this delivery war seems to be quietly borne by frontline staff. [more…]

It is normally a heartwarming thing for a chain brand to show its employees' daily lives through its official WeChat account, but Chayan Yuese recently found itself caught up in a public opinion storm because of it. A post introducing the work and life of its store employees drew scrutiny for mentioning that staff were busy late into the night and did not finish until 3 a.m. Several netizens claiming to be former employees and part-timers came forward to confirm that working overtime until the early hours after closing was already the norm; regular customers, meanwhile, had plenty of complaints about the nonstop recorded spiel played in stores. When workers' helpless daily overtime is used as promotional material, has the warmth the brand wants to convey lost its flavor? This article walks you through the ins and outs of this controversy. [more…]

Recently on social platforms, many part-time Luckin employees have posted about reduced shifts and monthly pay of only around two thousand yuan, drawing attention. After winter arrives, Luckin stores control part-time working hours, and it is not uncommon for only five hours to be scheduled in a day and only three or four days of work in a week. At the same time, Luckin baristas also have to face strict quality control inspections known as "nightmares," hand damage caused by frequent handwashing and sanitizing, and unpaid overtime of anywhere from a dozen minutes to an hour after closing. This article, based on real feedback from part-time employees, sorts through Luckin stores' quality control system, closing procedures, and part-time employment system, presenting a little-known side behind the barista position. Front Street Coffee also continues to pay attention to the real situation of workers in the coffee industry, providing enthusiasts with diverse perspectives. [more…]

Closing cleaning in the food and beverage industry has always been a major burden for late-shift employees, and coffee and tea shops are no exception. Recently, some Chagee stores have begun outsourcing closing-time cleaning to third-party professional teams, allowing many employees to get off work on time and even saving on parts replacement costs thanks to thorough equipment cleaning. However, this measure does not benefit all stores: franchise stores need to pay an additional service fee to apply for outsourced staff, and outsourcing only covers daily cleaning, while regular maintenance is still handled by store employees. What worries workers even more is that some franchise store managers have said that if outsourced closing is introduced, they may consider reducing staffing to control costs. Convenience and risk coexist—can outsourced closing truly let employees relax once and for all? [more…]

At the end of July, Luckin Coffee introduced a new closing procedure called "full scan" within its store system, requiring employees to scan and log every item with an expiration date label in the store one by one fifteen minutes before closing, and repeat the process again on the next morning shift. This move sparked a flood of complaints from frontline employees on social media—already tight staffing was further squeezed, unpaid overtime hours continued to lengthen, and the new system frequently suffered recognition failures and abnormal error reports during scanning, turning this digital initiative aimed at managing shelf-life control into what employees see as a burdensome "white elephant" feature that only adds extra work. This article is compiled from Coffee Workshop and takes you through the specific operational process and the real voices of employees behind this controversy. [more…]

Recently, Manner Coffee has once again become the focus of public opinion due to a mismatch between the number of employees enrolled in social insurance and the scale of its stores. Shanghai Yinhe Industrial Co., Ltd. had only 1,225 people enrolled in social insurance in 2023, while Manner has more than 1,295 stores, raising public suspicion about whether it has paid social insurance in full for all employees. The enforcement brigade of the Human Resources and Social Security Bureau has visited to investigate. Manner responded that it implements a comprehensive working hours system and that there is no situation of not signing contracts, not paying social insurance, or withholding overtime pay. In addition, the brand responded to topics such as leaked videos, store staffing, and employee treatment, admitting that the issue of one-person stores is complex, but promising to improve baristas' comfort at work. The incident continues to escalate, bringing common problems in the industry to the surface. [more…]

Recently, a coffee shop in Wuhan received a one-star review from a customer for closing promptly at 19:30. After the incident was reported by Jiupai News, it quickly sparked widespread discussion online. The review claimed that staff told the customer to "pack up and get out" before they had finished eating, while the shop responded that it strictly complies with the 8-hour workday under labor law, and after reviewing surveillance footage, found no excessively aggressive language from employees. The owner said they understand customers' desire for later closing hours, but also asked for understanding of workers' right to clock off on time. Netizens' views are polarized: some support the shop's right to close on time as long as it gives advance notice, while others suggest stopping orders half an hour early to avoid conflict. This controversy reflects the real-world tension in the food service industry between employee rights and customer experience. [more…]

Luckin Coffee has recently rolled out a series of new products, including light milk tea and iced shaken drinks. As its product line continues to expand, the pressure on store staff for ingredient preparation and drink-making has also increased. Recently, reports have emerged that Luckin has piloted the "Rui Binfen - Smart Tea Machine" in some stores in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, which can automatically dispense ingredients according to recipes, saving the step of manual weighing. Employees have mixed reactions: some are delighted that it reduces physical exertion and speeds up drink output, while others worry that cleaning the machine daily takes about an hour and may involve unpaid overtime. In addition, the tea machine is quite large and has certain requirements for counter space and drink output volume, so not all stores can install it. This article compiles genuine feedback from frontline employees and details on equipment use, so coffee enthusiasts can learn about new developments in chain-brand store operations. [more…]

Starbucks is facing a labor law lawsuit over scheduling violations in New York City, with an investigation finding more than 500,000 violations of the Fair Workweek Law, ultimately resulting in a $38.9 million settlement. The case involved more than 15,000 employees, making it the largest worker rights settlement in New York City history. Starbucks was accused of failing to provide stable schedules, cutting hours, and refusing overtime, making it difficult for employees to make a living, while the company said the settlement was intended to ensure compliance rather than to recover unpaid wages. Front Street Coffee brings you the full story. [more…]

Recently, a post about Sisyphe Books' café forcing employees to push recharge cards sparked heated discussion on social media. The customer who posted said they were pressured three times to top up a card while consuming in the store, which greatly diminished the experience. However, after learning that the staff were forced by company pressure to repeatedly push the sales, this regular customer shifted to sympathizing with the workers, saying the brand should not make things so hard for its employees. Many Sisyphe staff also无奈ly said that if they did not push the sales as required, they would be reported with surveillance screenshots or even forced to work overtime meetings. This conflict caused by sales pressure is trapping both customers and employees in a dilemma. [more…]

Recently, news that Luckin Coffee is about to join Meituan's Pinhaofan has been circulating on social platforms, making many Luckin store employees nervous and uneasy. Pinhaofan is a group-ordering service launched by Meituan Takeaway, allowing users to buy drinks and meals at prices far below market rates, and is jokingly called the Pinduoduo of the food delivery world. If Luckin really joins, the already cheap 9.9 yuan coffee could drop even further, which is naturally good news for consumers, but store employees worry about the staffing pressure caused by a surge in orders. At present, employees in different regions give differing accounts; Xiamen stores are said to have quietly begun trial operations, with sales clearly rising, but overtime problems have followed. [more…]

Luckin Coffee recently launched an internal AI-based store scheduling system that collects historical business data to predict the daily staffing and working hours needed at each store, attempting to allocate existing manpower more efficiently. However, this seemingly scientific automatic scheduling has drawn widespread complaints from many Luckin employees. They point out that the system uses hourly cup output as its core reference only, completely ignoring a large amount of invisible work such as cleaning, ingredient preparation, and expiration checks, leaving baristas working alone exhausted and even forced to work unpaid overtime just to finish up. Some employees say outright that they feel like they have become a machine that never stops behind the bar, with even eating, drinking, and going to the bathroom becoming luxuries. This efficiency reform driven by algorithms is pushing frontline baristas to the brink of physical and mental exhaustion. [more…]

Around the Spring Festival, a large number of university students flocked to tea and coffee shops for part-time work, but a rule at Heytea about mealtimes sparked confusion among employees: they are not allowed to eat unless they have worked a full 6 hours, and if they want to eat, they must either have half an hour deducted from their work hours or volunteer to work overtime. Multiple Heytea part-time employees reported encountering similar or even harsher requirements, and some stores were found to deliberately cap work hours and shorten shifts. In the food and beverage industry, mealtimes are peak hours, so it is normal for workers to be unable to eat on time, but employees question whether the rule is reasonable, believing that management, under the pretext of controlling labor efficiency, is cutting work hours and forcing workers to labor almost without rest while starving. [more…]

The food delivery platforms have once again kicked off a subsidy war, with Meituan and Alibaba distributing large numbers of milk tea redemption vouchers to users, triggering a collective surge in orders at chain stores such as Mixue Bingcheng, Chabaidao, Goodme, and Shanghai Auntie. On the night of July 5, orders flooded into tea beverage stores in many places like a tidal wave, receipt printers nearly collapsed, and employees kept busy from the evening shift until the early hours of the morning yet still could not clear the backlog of orders. Some stores urgently called back off-duty employees for support, while delivery riders and customers surrounded the stores so tightly that not a drop could get through. While consumers got milk tea for 0 yuan, the workers behind the counter experienced a night comparable to "doomsday." This game between platforms ultimately shifted the pressure onto the frontline tea beverage workers. [more…]

Near closing time, the coffee machine has already been cleaned, and at that moment a customer walks in through the door asking if they can have a cup of coffee—such a scene is not uncommon in the coffee industry. Recently, some consumers have reported that they arrived at a coffee shop before the end of business hours to place an order but were refused, with staff saying that the store had already cut off orders early and that the coffee machine would not be turned back on after cleaning. The incident sparked heated discussion online: one side believes that customers should be served during business hours, while the other side sympathizes with coffee workers who do not want to work overtime. How should coffee shops balance service and operations? And how should similar situations be handled properly? This article compiles views from various parties for the reference of coffee enthusiasts. [more…]

Luckin Coffee recently piloted a new scheduling system in cities such as Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Chengdu. The system can predict peak hours based on store sales data and arrange minimal staffing accordingly. While the new system improves efficiency, it has also sparked discussions about the distribution of work between full-time and part-time employees, responses to unexpected situations, and labor cost control. At the same time, as Luckin's store expansion slows and sales decline, the problem of redundant staff is gradually emerging, and this system upgrade is seen as an important measure to reduce costs and increase efficiency. As coffee lovers, it is worth learning about the impact of this change on store operations and employee experience. [more…]

In the final days of 2025, Luckin employees were busy with year-end inventory checks when they unexpectedly received a notice to calibrate store equipment stock, requiring them to verify whether small base-ingredient scoops and ice cream scoops were complete. This move immediately sparked speculation: is the brand about to launch a new product that requires scooping ice cream balls on site? Veteran employees were also reminded of the cumbersome add-in tea drinks from the Little Deer Tea era. With timeliness and hourly cup volume assessments becoming increasingly stringent, complex new products will undoubtedly add pressure on stores. Workers generally resist it, but some optimistic people think it may just be a routine inventory check. [more…]