Reuters says that conditions, benefits and salaries have deteriorated at Starbucks — once celebrated in the media for its happy, loyal workforce. Apparently, disillusioned Starbucks workers are everywhere you care to look.

The article introduces us to one cafe manager who recently quit after Starbucks cut costs, introduced corporate-type-stuff like scheduling software and increased the overall emphasis on product sales.

From Reuters:

The disappearing perks and the financial fixes dampened her enthusiasm for recruiting potential new partners, as Starbucks calls its employees. “I found it really sad. I was really invested,” said [the manager], who was in charge of a Starbucks in the Florida Panhandle. “I just didn’t feel proud anymore. I wasn’t in it to manage a McDonald’s.”

Meanwhile, Wall Street is happy and the business is doing well — even though, despite the cutbacks, Starbucks still spends more on heath care than it does on coffee.

Starbucks employees say work has lost its buzz [MSNBC]

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