Starbucks Owes Mass Baristas More Than $14 Million

A US Court of Appeals panel upheld a lower court ruling saying that a company policy violated state laws.

Starbucks owes baristas across Massachusetts more than $14 million for “violating state laws preventing supervisors from sharing in tips pools,” reported The Boston Globe. A US Court of Appeals panel upheld a lower court ruling on the issue in which “Starbucks baristas challenged the Seattle coffee chain’s practice of requiring them to share tips with shift supervisors, according to a class-action lawsuit filed in 2008,” reported The Globe. The ruling reportedly affects about 11,000 baristas who worked in Starbucks between 2005 and 2001.

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Groups to Boycott Starbucks Over Stances on Gay Rights, Guns [POLL]

Separate boycotts criticize coffee chain's stances on national issues.

Some religious and political groups are urging Starbucks customers to grab their morning coffee elsewhere in light of the company's stance on gay marriage and its policy on guns. USA Christian Ministries, a group boycotting Starbucks for its recent support of gay marriage in the state of Washington, said in a news release that the coffee chain's decision has angered Christians. "Christians are upset with Starbucks for turning against God," Steven Andrew, president of USA Christian Ministries, said. The group hopes that, with full support from Christians, Starbucks, which operates three locations in Marlborough, could lose up to 80 percent of its business. Starbucks joined Microsoft and Nike in publicly supporting gay marriage in a …

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Frugal Family

Energy savings and rebates, plus savings on organic groceries and fast food.

This week’s Frugal Family has rebates for home system upgrades from Mass Save, coupons for organic groceries, and fast food deals!

1. Running old appliances or inefficient home systems can result in high operating costs for your family. Highly-efficient new appliances can often pay for themselves with their reduced energy consumption. Reducing consumption not only saves money, it is good for the environment. Our family made some energy-saving system updates to our home three years ago. We were able to take advantage of a few incentive programs, and our new efficient systems have helped to reduced our energy consumption costs. If you are not currently in the market to purchase new appliances or systems, bookmark these sites for future reference. Be advised that the incentive programs change from time to time.  There are different terms and conditions for each program; …

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Lois Black

9:34 am on Wednesday, May 11, 2011

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Great Escape

A Good Cup of Coffee

After a long day, sometimes the best way to escape is to grab a tasty cup of coffee.

Whether you call it “joe” or “take” it regular, coffee is an important part of many lives. People rely on it to get their days going. From that first and best sip to the bottom of a second cup, we transform from groggy to mentally alert. Coffee has always been a social drink, the earliest coffeehouses dating back to sixteenth-century Istanbul! For moms, coffee undoubtedly meets the need for feeling awake, but it also conjures up an image of a break. Either in your favorite mug or handed to you at a drive-through, whether you're by yourself or in adult company, just add coffee and you have respite. All kinds of moms love to meet for coffee! There's the first-time mother, sleep-deprived and maybe feeling isolated. There's a toddler's mom who…

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