Starbucks workers have now expanded their strike to four additional US cities, including New York. The Workers United Union, which represents more than 10,000 baristas, said Saturday that the five-day strike began Friday.

The strike initially led to the closure of the beverage and coffee chain’s cafes in Los Angeles, Seattle and Chicago, Reuters reported. The strike has now spread to New York, New Jersey, Philadelphia and St. Louis, the union said in a statement.

However, the statement did not reveal the exact location of the walkout in New Jersey. The strikes took place after negotiations between the company and the union reached an impasse and issues regarding wages, hours and personnel remained unresolved.

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The union is currently on strike in 10 cities, including Denver and Columbus. The strike comes during the busy holiday season, which could impact the coffee chain’s Christmas sales.

On Friday, the union warned the strike could reach “hundreds of stores” by Tuesday, which is also Christmas Eve.

Negotiations failed

Negotiations notably began between the two parties at the beginning of April. The company said this month that it had held more than eight bargaining sessions with the union and reached 30 agreements during those negotiations. both parties earlier in April.

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Starbucks earlier said it was prepared to continue negotiations with the union and claimed union stewards ended negotiations prematurely this week. However, in a post on social media platform Facebook on Friday, the union said the company had yet to present a serious economic proposal as the year-end deadline remained less than two weeks away. .

The union also rejected an offer of no immediate wage increase and a guarantee of a 1.5 percent increase in coming years.

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