Starbucks employees have been complaining that they are being treated like 'coffee-making robots' due to the sheer amount of complicated, long customised orders they're getting.
Workers told the Guardian that viral TikTok videos on 'secret menu hacks' and personalised recipes are increasing the demand for complex orders. Check this one out, which demonstrates a 'secret menu Chunky monkey' creation with mocha coffee, hazelnut, toffee nut syrup, banana, vanilla bean powder, caramel drizzle and mocha drizzle:
As the social media trend continues to be the driving force behind the elaborate orders, baristas at the chain are starting to complain.
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Speaking to The Guardian, a shift supervisor said: "These orders are driving us insane because they're so long, so specific and it requires you to do much more work than you should be doing for one single drink and they're not being adequately translated into our labor hours."
An anonymous Maryland barista also told the publication: "With mobile order or delivery, we can't always clarify what they want and people will get very mad over sort of little stuff when you've made the drink almost perfectly, and it's frustrating to feel like you can't say we can't really make it that way, so people treat us like coffee-making robots."
This all comes after a Starbucks order went viral for being that ridiculous it made an employee want to quit after the customer requested 13 add-ons or alterations.
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A Twitter user called Josie (@ProjectJosiee) was the lucky barista serving 'Edward' that day, and took a photo of the order to share online.
He tweeted: "On today's episode of why I wanna quit my job." He has since been fired for breaching Starbucks' social media policy.
After the tweet went viral, Edward spoke out saying that he didn't see a problem with the order. The 31-year-old customer told the New York Post: "I don't see a reason why I wouldn't order a drink like this again. I just ordered another drink just like it yesterday."
Edward, a project manager, went on to add: "It's fine to keep ordering these speciality drinks from Starbucks.
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"As long as you take care of the people who make the drinks by giving them a decent tip, then everyone should be happy."
At the time a spokesperson from Starbucks told Fox News: "Customizing beverages at Starbucks and our baristas' expertise in helping customers find and craft the right beverage has and always will be the heart of the Starbucks experience.
"There are many ways for customers to modify their favorite beverage at Starbucks and most customizations are reasonable requests from customers."
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In response to the Guardian's report, a Starbucks spokesperson said: "Our 200,000 partners across the US are the best people in the business, and their experiences are key to helping us make Starbucks a meaningful and inspiring place to work.
"We offer a world-class benefits program for all part- and full-time partners and continued support for partners during Covid-19 to care for themselves and their families, and we continue to have an industry-leading retention rate."
LADbible has reached out to Starbucks for further comment.
Featured Image Credit: PA