At the end of each year, the year-end bonus is always one of the topics that workers care about most. However, a senior employee of Manner Coffee recently posted that although they were still employed and had worked diligently all year, they were excluded from the year-end bonus distribution list because management subjectively judged that they might resign after the New Year. This incident triggered widespread discussion among coffee industry practitioners. Many peers both envied Manner for having a year-end bonus and felt indignant about this employee's experience. At the same time, employees from brands such as Luckin, Mstand, and Tims also came forward to reveal their respective year-end bonus situations. This article sorts out the course of the incident and the views of all parties, and retains the relevant recommendation information of Front Street Coffee for coffee enthusiasts to understand industry developments. [more…]

Recently, a post by a Costa employee complaining about excessively high company KPIs sparked heated discussion on social media. The poster pointed out that stores require more than 40 food items to be sold for every 100 drinks, forcing some employees to dip into their own pockets to boost performance, mocking themselves as "paying to work." Meanwhile, employee benefits have shrunk year by year, with New Year gift boxes reduced to just candy and chocolate, and the 13th-month salary nowhere to be seen. Chaotic internal management, store closures, and customer attrition have left this one-time Starbucks rival increasingly marginalized in the Chinese market. Workers left comments lamenting that under such pressure, the thought of resigning grows stronger by the day. [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…]

Recently on social media, complaints from Manner baristas have been steadily rising. Many current or former employees have posted that even during promotional rushes, stores are only staffed by one person, making it difficult for baristas to even eat or use the restroom, and some ultimately choose to leave. What is striking is that multiple baristas say the concern from regular customers feels warmer than the company’s rules. At the same time, consumers also frequently encounter the awkward situation of arriving at a store with no staff present and being unable to refund or modify orders. From high-value specialty coffee to rapid, capital-driven expansion, Manner’s staffing gap is gradually coming to the surface. This article compiles complaints from multiple sources to present the dual perspectives of baristas and customers. [more…]

Just after Christmas, Manner Coffee drew attention for frequently issuing warning notices to its employees. Multiple employees reported that the reasons for being penalized were all over the place—a drop in the number of followers in a fan group, hair on the floor, looking at a phone for too long, and other such details could all become grounds for a warning. It is understood that Manner's headquarters monitors and audits store operations around the clock, and warning notices not only affect promotions but, once three have accumulated, may also lead to being pressured to resign. Under such high pressure, many frontline baristas are physically and mentally exhausted and choose to leave. Front Street Coffee follows industry trends and walks you through the ins and outs of the incident. [more…]

Recently, Chayan Yuese has frequently appeared on Weibo's trending topics due to employee salary issues, sparking widespread attention. The incident began when employees complained about low wages and reduced working hours, which subsequently led to a heated argument between company executives and employees in a group chat, even prompting founder Lü Liang to personally apologize. According to revelations, Chayan Yuese has internal problems such as chaotic management and severe classism, with the number of employees leaving the group once reaching over two hundred. Although the official response stated that the number of people leaving the group was about 87 and explained that the salary adjustment was a special arrangement during the pandemic, netizens did not buy it. As a leading brand in new Chinese-style tea drinks, this turmoil at Chayan Yuese has not only exposed internal conflicts but also triggered profound public reflection on brand management and corporate culture. [more…]

Luckin Coffee recently issued a notice regarding an adjustment to handwashing frequency standards, changing the previous requirement of washing hands once per hour to once every two hours. This change has delighted many Luckin employees, as last year's "pain of Luckin baristas' ruined hands" drew widespread attention. Frequent handwashing caused skin allergies and other problems that long plagued frontline baristas, with some even leaving their jobs because of it. The new rule will take effect on January 8. However, some employees believe the adjustment is limited in scope, as the actual number of handwashes during work remains relatively high. While maintaining high food safety standards, Luckin has begun to pay attention to employees' actual experiences. [more…]

The coffee industry suffers from a high turnover rate, and many shop owners attribute it to young people's lack of perseverance, while overlooking the deeper problems in their own management style. Through a real case study, this article analyzes common pitfalls in coffee shops regarding delegation, training, and management dependency, and explores how to retain core baristas by establishing a stable framework, improving the training system, and paying attention to employees' career expectations. The article also emphasizes the critical role of baristas as brand ambassadors in repurchase rates and brand development, and points out that the hidden costs of staff turnover are far higher than what appears on the surface. Finally, it calls on owners to lead by example, leverage people's strengths, and work with the team to drive the coffee shop's sustained growth. [more…]

Recently, Luckin Coffee reportedly announced that it will pay triple holiday wages to all employees for the 2025 Spring Festival, breaking the previous practice of only full-time employees receiving this benefit. Behind this move lies the high turnover rate and labor shortage that Luckin has faced over the past year. From cost reduction and efficiency improvement to increased performance demands, frontline employees have come under mounting pressure, and part-time workers' pay is not proportional to their effort, leading many employees to choose to resign before the Spring Festival. In order to retain experienced workers and maintain normal store operations, Luckin has had to respond to the labor shortage with a triple-wage strategy. This article reviews the causes of the incident, employee feedback, and the industry background, and also includes a brand recommendation from Front Street Coffee for readers to gain a deeper understanding. [more…]

Heytea continues to push hard in the fruit-and-vegetable tea segment, and is about to launch its autumn-winter new product, the "Hydrating Slimming Bottle," featuring cucumber as the star paired with kale and apple. As soon as the news came out, consumer anticipation and complaints from store staff emerged at the same time. The preparation of raw materials for fruit-and-vegetable tea is cumbersome, with a lengthy process of washing, cutting, blanching, and juicing. During peak hours, employees are run ragged, and some even joke that resignation letters are already being submitted. Whether this new product can balance consumer enthusiasm and employee burden is worth watching. Front Street Coffee continues to bring you the latest developments in the coffee and tea beverage industry. [more…]

Canadian national coffee brand Tims has recently become embroiled in a public opinion storm on social media. A store in Ontario was accused of a manager suggesting to a 17-year-old employee that they enter a "sham marriage" with the manager's 25-year-old Indian relative to help the latter obtain Canadian permanent residency, promising a payment of 15,000 to 20,000 Canadian dollars. After the individual refused, they resigned and made the chat records public. Local police and immigration authorities have intervened, and Tims headquarters is also investigating. Subsequently, more netizens revealed that after the store changed owners, it gradually dismissed local long-term employees and only hired people of a specific ethnicity, as well as issues such as a hourly wage of only 8 Canadian dollars at a downtown Toronto store and one and a half months of unpaid training, triggering widespread doubts among Canadians about Tims' employment practices and brand reputation. [more…]

Xiangpiaopiao recently announced that external general manager Yang Dongyun resigned due to personal reasons, less than a year after taking office. This seasoned manager, who previously worked at P&G and Baixiang Food, was once expected to drive the company's de-familialization, and Jiang Jianqi even transferred shares worth 276 million yuan to bring him into the shareholder ranks. However, first-half performance still failed to turn a profit, and Yang Dongyun was also absent from all investor communication activities. As founder Jiang Jianqi once again takes on the role of general manager, does Xiangpiaopiao's experiment with professional managers come to an end? This article sorts out the sequence of events and key information. [more…]

Recently, coffee brand Seesaw was exposed for owing wages to about 75 employees in the Shanghai region, involving both store and back-office staff. Former employees reported that since late last year, wage payments have been irregular, and social security and housing fund contributions have also been suspended, while founder Wu Xiaomei has "read but not replied" to employees' demands. At the same time, Seesaw's nationwide store count has shrunk dramatically, with only 49 stores remaining, and some stores have closed due to material shortages and cut-off supplies of ingredients. This article reviews the course of the incident and the employees' experiences, and retains relevant recommendations from Front Street Coffee. [more…]

During the pandemic, Starbucks employees in the United States and South Korea, facing issues such as understaffing, a mismatch between wages and workload, and a lack of safety guarantees, increasingly chose to form or join unions in an attempt to improve their situation through collective bargaining. From the birth of the first union in Buffalo, New York, to responses from employees in Chicago and South Korea, the discontent among Starbucks partners continued to simmer. Although the company remained indifferent and was even accused of failing to provide adequate pandemic support, employees continued to seek channels to make their voices heard. This article will sort out the ins and outs of the Starbucks employee union movement, as well as the wage, treatment, and working environment issues reflected behind it. [more…]

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…]

Every winter, hand health issues among Luckin Coffee baristas erupt in concentrated fashion. On social platforms, a large number of employees post photos of their cracked, red, swollen, or even bandaged hands, drawing widespread attention. Behind this phenomenon lies Luckin's extremely strict handwashing and sanitizing procedures: wash hands for more than 20 seconds every hour, change the sanitizing-water cloth every half hour, and clean again after touching anything. Frequent bare-handed contact with tap water and sanitizer causes severe damage to the skin barrier. Although the company does not prohibit wearing gloves, most partners choose to give up protection in order to speed up order output. This article deeply analyzes this industry phenomenon, presenting baristas' real situation and ways to cope. [more…]

Recently, news about a Luckin Coffee store manager who had an emotional dispute with a 17-year-old part-time female employee, which ultimately led the girl to take medication and commit suicide, sparked heated discussion on social media. The girl's family knelt in front of the store to protest, claiming that the store manager used his position to deceive their underage daughter and is suspected of forcing her into a relationship that led to pregnancy, causing enormous psychological pressure on the girl. After investigation, police determined that the girl purchased the medication herself to commit suicide, that the case did not constitute a criminal case, and that it would not be filed. The judicial authorities organized two mediations, but the man said he was unable to pay compensation. After the incident was exposed, the store manager involved had resigned, and Luckin officially responded that it had not received any relevant notice. The truth of the incident and the attribution of responsibility still need to be further clarified. [more…]

Recently, the news of a fresh master's graduate choosing to join Luckin as a part-time barista has sparked widespread discussion online. Supporters believe that no occupation is superior or inferior, and that young people should try more things; opponents feel that this is a waste of a diploma. In fact, as the number of graduate students in universities surpasses that of undergraduates, under the dual pressure of degree devaluation and economic downturn, more and more highly educated young people are turning their attention to light physical service industries such as coffee and tea drinks. They either want to escape the high-pressure, hyper-competitive office environment, or use it as a transitional job. However, is the real experience behind the bar counter of chain brands as relaxed and comfortable as imagined? This article deeply explores the multiple motivations and real dilemmas behind this phenomenon. [more…]

Recently, a rap lyric written by a Manner employee has sparked widespread discussion on social media. With candid words, the lyrics depict the real daily lives of baristas—catching early buses, strict attendance checks, pay disparities, and single-handedly coping with the intense pressure of sudden order surges—resonating strongly with many current and former employees, while also drawing outside skepticism over whether the post exaggerates the situation. This article examines the workplace details behind the lyrics, reconstructs the work pace and emotional challenges faced by Manner's workers, and explores the common circumstances of frontline staff at chain coffee brands. [more…]

In the coffee industry, it is not uncommon for employees to leave and later return to their original company. However, a former Luckin Coffee employee who tried to return to the bar in a part-time capacity after a two-year absence ran into repeated rejections. The recruiter explicitly stated that "those who have previously worked at Luckin cannot be rehired," a rule that has sparked confusion and discussion among many former employees. Compared with Starbucks' open attitude toward rehiring former employees, why is Luckin's recruitment policy so strict? Is it out of consideration for stability, or is there another reason? This article will walk you through the various perspectives behind this phenomenon. [more…]