Starbucks is about to toss 1,100 employees and a few menu items onto the chopping block

Starbucks is a comforting presence in many people’s lives, from the annual excitement of the Pumpkin Spice Latte to the fact that you can find a location pretty much anywhere you go. But now the coffee chain is making some big changes.

As reported by USA TODAY, 1,100 corporate Starbucks employees are being let go. CEO Brian Niccol said “We understand the real effect this has on partners’ lives and their families. We believe it’s a necessary change to position Starbucks for future success.” According to Yahoo! Finance, outgoing employees could get advice on career paths and healthcare, and severance payment, based on their longevity with Starbucks. They will get benefits and pay for several months (which sources say would be May 2, 2025, at the earliest).

Starbucks is also getting rid of 13 drinks on Mar. 4, 2025. These include the Java Chip Frappuccino, White Chocolate Mocha Frappuccino, Honey Almondmilk Flat White, and Royal English Breakfast Latte, among a few others. The company plans to reduce 30% of its beverage and food menu and has set a goal of Sept. 2025. As Starbucks said in their official statement to TODAY.com, removing these is going to “make way for innovation, help reduce wait times, improve quality and consistency, and align with our core identity as a coffee company.”

These drinks are being phased out because people don’t order them as much and customers can get drinks with ingredients that will basically taste the same, and that definitely makes sense. But aren’t drinks with long ingredient lists the whole point of going to Starbucks? I might be the rare Starbucks drinker who loves drinking black coffee, but isn’t it a place known for having a huge menu of complex beverages? I can’t help but think of my favorite line from You’ve Got Mail: when Joe Fox (Tom Hanks) says, “The whole purpose of places like Starbucks is for people with no decision-making ability whatsoever to make six decisions just to buy one cup of coffee.” That should never change! I didn’t even know there was a drink called the Royal English Breakfast Latte, but now I’m curious to try it… in the remaining days before it’s gone forever.

The loss of a few Frappucinos seems particularly grim. As Eater.com pointed out, there’s nothing better than being a teenager and enjoying this sweet and creamy drink. I have fond memories of the Java Chip flavor. (Let’s be real, when else in your life can you drink that much sugar and go on with the rest of your day and not feel gross?) It also seems like coffee companies should be adding more menu items, not getting rid of some, at least when it comes to food (and if they can add healthy food, that would be great, too).

The Starbucks layoffs and menu shifts come after a strike by baristas on Dec. 24, 2024. The layoffs also come a few years after, back in 2018, around 350 workers in store development, technology, creative, product, and marketing were fired.

Niccol, who became Starbucks CEO in Aug. 2024, has set a lot of plans in place that include menu boards that are digital, and making mobile orders easier. According to Restaurant Dive, Niccol explained the orders “come flooding in faster than even our customer can get there.” The idea is to figure out which drinks should be prepared first, so it goes smoother. That’s one change many customers can get behind.