Former Starbucks Employee: Why The 'New' Bathroom Policy Is A Steaming Cup Of Fail

For the year I worked at Starbucks, my manager made it very clear to all the partners at our location that the store’s two bathrooms were for paying customers only. (Starbucks calls its employees “partners” because they get an annual share in the company stock, among other reasons).

Like many other Starbucks stores, we set a four-digit code on the bathroom locks so they couldn’t be accessed by just anybody. Paying customers had to ask for the code. And it changed every couple of weeks, so even regular customers had to ask. But there were good reasons behind this mandatory system that has recently been changed to allow non-paying customers to use Starbucks bathrooms, too.

First, the store I worked at was the third busiest in the entire city of Boston, located next door to Mass General Hospital, two large hotels, a train station and a residential neighborhood. The street was also home to many homeless people who slept beneath store awnings and private doorways in early hours of the morning when we opened.

In Boston, it’s illegal to offer shelter to people abusing substances. The Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) and Emergency Assistance (EA) are legally allowed to perform drug tests on those they believe to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol at shelters. Therefore, those who do have alcoholism problems or drug addictions often make the conscious choice to pitch up outside in public areas.

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