Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wish there was a way to do this for libraries too. The homeless have taken them over.

Yeah, they should just freeze to death!

how about opening day shelters for them?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wish there was a way to do this for libraries too. The homeless have taken them over.

I know! The massive shopping carts of garbage and who knows what are so gross to have in an indoor, public space.

Yeah … I thought I’d stop by my local library to read but … nope, so smelly and gross. I don’t mind sharing space with everyone but it frankly stank and I worried about bedbugs.

and I noticed that MLK library has yet again become a de facto homeless encampment at the front entrance.

I hope that everyone follows suit and realizes that public space (including “public accomodations” like Starbucks) is for the public, and it shouldn’t be taken over by loiterers or criminals.

about the only positive thing is that the libraries do seem to have realized they have to make sure children have safe spaces, so they have children and teen areas that are well overseen.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait, so you should be able to sit and "work" there for hours but no one else should?

I personally think 20-30 min limit for everyone at a coffee shop is very reasonable.

I'm buying stuff. If they want to enforce 20-30 minutes for paying customers, fine, but would result in lost business not only from people who work from these spots, but also (for example) friends wanting to meet up for coffee. Most of those meetups would be more like an hour, not 20 minutes.

How much are you buying when you're working? I see time limits in some restaurants where we've spent over $100. They don't let us park at a table all day because they need turnover to make money. What's more, when I do meet a friend at Starbucks for coffee, I've got glares from the laptop folk who want quiet so they can work.

I KNOW!!! The whole idea of working from Starbucks is so asinine I can't even! For one, my employer would never allow me to participate in a meeting from Starbucks. Their WiFi is public, there are people around listening that my employer didn't vet, there is background noise, the list goes on. That's before we even come anywhere the entitlement issue these folks have with parking themselves in a business for hours to conduct business.

This comment totally makes sense because everyone in the world is exactly like you!

DP. I am a reasonable person, and the world is full of reasonable people. Therefore, whatever I think, everyone else thinks. QED.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait, so you should be able to sit and "work" there for hours but no one else should?

I personally think 20-30 min limit for everyone at a coffee shop is very reasonable.

I'm buying stuff. If they want to enforce 20-30 minutes for paying customers, fine, but would result in lost business not only from people who work from these spots, but also (for example) friends wanting to meet up for coffee. Most of those meetups would be more like an hour, not 20 minutes.

How much are you buying when you're working? I see time limits in some restaurants where we've spent over $100. They don't let us park at a table all day because they need turnover to make money. What's more, when I do meet a friend at Starbucks for coffee, I've got glares from the laptop folk who want quiet so they can work.

I KNOW!!! The whole idea of working from Starbucks is so asinine I can't even! For one, my employer would never allow me to participate in a meeting from Starbucks. Their WiFi is public, there are people around listening that my employer didn't vet, there is background noise, the list goes on. That's before we even come anywhere the entitlement issue these folks have with parking themselves in a business for hours to conduct business.

This comment totally makes sense because everyone in the world is exactly like you!

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait, so you should be able to sit and "work" there for hours but no one else should?

I personally think 20-30 min limit for everyone at a coffee shop is very reasonable.

I'm buying stuff. If they want to enforce 20-30 minutes for paying customers, fine, but would result in lost business not only from people who work from these spots, but also (for example) friends wanting to meet up for coffee. Most of those meetups would be more like an hour, not 20 minutes.

So you think your $5 latte entitles you take up their space for an entire day? And you don't see a problem with that. If you need to work, go rent a place, go to the library, work from home. Starbucks is a business. They need to turn tables and sell products. I would love if they enforced the 20-30 min limit on everyone.

First off, "$5 latte", you clearly haven't been to Starbucks since 2013. I don't work there the entire day. It's a couple hours. And clearly, Starbucks does not see a problem with that. I don't see them setting time limits or banning anyone who actually is buying things.

I guess they do with this new policy. Kudos to them.

It applies to people who aren't buying anything. Can you read?

OK so you plan to buy something every 30 min? Great.

The policy does not require this but also I would be find buying things while I sit there, in fact I already do this because if I finish my drink but am still working I will usually order another or get something to eat.

I know you've made hating people who work at coffee shops like 20% of your personality but fortunately Starbucks loves people who work at coffee shops and people who work at coffee shops love Starbucks. It's a deeply symbiotic relationship and you can't break us up.

DP. What makes you think Starbucks loves you? Maybe the barista who you tipped generously but your one drink and maybe a pastry for hours of internet, using their toilet and taking up a table for two is not in their interest.

Well I know Starbucks loves me because they are a corporate entity that exists for the sole purpose of making money and I give them lots of my money in exchange for consumables and a place to sit and work for hours.

But also the manager at my regular Starbucks definitely likes me and always brings me and other regulars samples of stuff and we've had conversations about how it's a particularly nice Starbucks and also how corporate needs to send someone to fix automatic faucet in one of the bathrooms because it sprays water too hard and it hits the sink at a wrong angle and sprays water all over the bathroom. Those of us in the know use the other bathroom to avoid this which also saves the manager the trouble of having to mop down that bathroom again. Come on, Corporate! Fix the sink.

xoxo

You're just....like so special...and everyone LOVES you...

Omg you feel jealous of a corporation.

Anonymous wrote:I fully support this policy. I work from Starbucks or another coffee shop 2-3x a month, and Starbucks is the only spot where I've encountered 'problem' people. In the last month alone, there was a man with multiple suitcases shouting into his phone for close to an hour, taking up two tables; another woman using it as a play area for her kids; a homeless man taking up residence in the bathroom...none of these people bought anything.

And I imagine it is a pain for the workers to deal with these people.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/starbucks-open-door-policy-reversal-purchase-now-required/

Only rich people are allowed to misbehave? That's what you value in the world? Wow

The Starbucks policy is really designed for homeless people and we have to be realistic, it's become a problem. I stopped going to the library a long time ago because homeless people were constantly making them uncomfortable places. Why libraries should become refuges for the homeless is beyond me. Typical urban progressive mindset, I suppose. One can't fault Starbucks for tackling this problem.

6:45 again. I wanted to add this one:

- Don't take up more room than necessary. Your backpack and jacket don't need their own chairs, and choose a table appropriate for one person (or two if you go to work with someone else, which I sometimes do). I think some of the people complaining about lack of seating due to people working may actually be because some people occupy more than one seat because they like to spread out. That's rude.

There is an etiquette to working in a coffee shop. Some people follow it and others don't. Those of you complaining are complaining about the people who don't follow the etiquette. Those of us who sometimes work in coffee shops are also annoyed by those people. But working in coffee shops is normal and yes the shops often encourage it. My Starbucks has comfortable padded seating and each table has its own charging station so you can plug in a laptop and cell phone at the same time. Plus the free wifi and the deals they offer me on the app at various times of day are inducements to work there.

Anyway, this is what I consider to be proper etiquette for working at a coffee shop, Starbucks or otherwise:

- Don't go during peak traffic hours. No one should be camping out on their laptop at like 8am when there is a line out the door and they are churning out 20 drinks a minute. If you are going to work, go during off-peak hours like mid-morning, early afternoon, or the evening after commutes.

- Don't go for 6 hours. That's too long. I think my absolute max is 3 hours, and that would be unusual (and I would only do it if the place were fairly empty). I generally go for like 90-120 minutes.

- Obviously, order something. Most places actually do require this -- Starbucks was an outlier for a while but this is standard. I generally order at least one drink for each hour I'm there, or I'll order a very large drink. I usually also order food simply because I get hungry. It's rare that I go work in a coffee shop and don't spend $10-20.

- No video meetings or conference calls. This is the one I see a lot and annoys me. No one should have to listen to you update your boss on your project progress during your weekly Teams call. You should do that in private. I personally think in person meetings are fine if it's just two people. This is functionally not very different from like meeting someone you met an an industry event at a coffee shop to network, and most people think that's fine too. But the conference and video calls are very obnoxious, especially when people don't wear headphones.

I think if people follow these guidelines, working at coffee shops is perfectly reasonable and likely helps these businesses fill tables during slower times of day and justify longer hours, which I think is good.

Anonymous wrote:I literally never have trouble finding a seat at Starbucks. I'm sorry that happened to some of you one time but also if that is your biggest problem...

Starbucks explicitly markets itself as a place to go and work for longer periods of time. There are other coffee shops that don't do that. In DC there's Baked & Wired in NoMa and the last time I was there they didn't even offer wifi because they wanted to deter people going there to work. That's a fantastic coffee shop with great coffee and really good fresh baked goods. It's also huge.

It's okay for there to be different places for different uses. Starbucks wants to be a destination for people who want to camp out and work and most people who do that actually do spend quite a bit of money there.

Actually, no, Starbucks doesn’t want you moochers there “camping” out. Can you not tell how cold and uncomfortable they have made stores? They are trying to nudge you out the door with cold tables, hard chairs, foot traffic and drafts from the door. They want tables turned, not occupied by laptop weirdos for 6 hours every day.

Anonymous wrote:Wait, so you should be able to sit and "work" there for hours but no one else should?

I personally think 20-30 min limit for everyone at a coffee shop is very reasonable.

+1. People “working” from a Panera and coffee shop are so creepy to me. Aren’t people embarrassed to be sitting there for hours on end? No shame. Go to a library or stay home. Stop leeching from a business.

Starbucks sued their own union. They are trash- go somewhere else.

Is this in DC?

Good! Im hoping woke is dead now. Ive had enough.

Anonymous wrote:I wish there was a way to do this for libraries too. The homeless have taken them over.

+900000 we stopped going because its just too messed up there now.