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Starbucks staff caught in crossfire of ‘Tank Day’ controversy

Published: 22 May. 2026, 14:24 Updated: 22 May. 2026, 19:03

Starbucks tumblers and cups are seen broken and dented at a press conference condemning Starbucks Korea held in front of the E-Mart Gwangju branch on May 21. [YONHAP]

Starbucks Korea employees say they are bearing the brunt of public anger over the company's controversial “Tank Day” promotion held on the anniversary of the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement, allegedly facing verbal abuse and harassment from customers at their stores.

A worker at a Starbucks in Yongin, Gyeonggi, said a male customer approached her counter on Thursday afternoon without placing an order and pressured her to quit her job. "He kept saying, 'Why are you working at an Ilbe workplace like this? You should quit,'" she said, referring to a far-right online community notorious for ridiculing and disparaging the Gwangju uprising. "I asked him to stop, but he wouldn't, and some customers who were waiting in line ended up leaving the store."

A worker at another Starbucks in the greater Seoul area described a similar experience. When she declined to refund a visibly used tumbler, the customer apparently erupted. "He started swearing at me, saying, 'How are you going to take responsibility for me being mistaken for an Ilbe supporter?'" she said.

Online, a recent post on the anonymous workplace platform Blind by someone identifying themselves as a Starbucks store manager wrote, "I'm afraid to go to work. Our partners on the floor are in agony because of this marketing disaster. Why should those of us sweating away in the stores be subjected to ideological scrutiny and verbal abuse?" The manager added that posting the company's official apology in stores only made employees "a target that tells customers, 'Come yell at me.'"

People protest Starbucks Korea's ″Tank Day″ campaign in Gwangju on May 22. [NEWS1]

Another alleged employee wrote on the same platform: "I've fallen into depression from being used as a punching bag, and everyone around me has started asking if I'm okay."

Starbucks Korea has been facing backlash over inappropriate language used in its tumbler promotion event, which designated May 18, the anniversary of the Gwangju Democratization Movement, as "Tank Day." The phrase “Tak! on the desk,” used in promotional materials, also drew criticism for recalling the infamous police statement issued after student activist Park Jong-cheol's death by torture. “Tak” is Korean onomatopoeia used to describe a sharp sound, often from one object hitting another, similar to the English language's “bang.”

As the controversy escalated, Shinsegae Group Chairman Chung Yong-jin issued a public apology on Tuesday, saying he “fully acknowledges that all responsibility lies with [him]” and dismissed Starbucks Korea's CEO.

The issue is now being politicized.

Interior Minister Yun Ho-jung on Thursday wrote on X that "treating history lightly or consuming it as commercial material is not something that can be brushed aside," adding that his ministry would stop purchasing products from companies that disrespect the values of democracy.

Yang Hong-seok, a lawyer and advisory member of the government's prosecution reform task force, filed a court petition seeking payment of unused Starbucks card balances. "I'm not thinking about a class action at all, but it would be nice if more plaintiffs joined," he said.

Starbucks mugs are seen broken in these photos posted on social media in the wake of Starbucks Korea's ″Tank Day″ promotion which was widely seen as mocking the country's pro-democracy movement. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

Jeong Cheong-rae, leader of the ruling Democratic Party, ordered party candidates and campaign workers to avoid Starbucks ahead of the June 3 local elections, and called on Shinsegae's Chung to "get on his knees and beg for forgiveness."

On the other side of the aisle, the main opposition People Power Party lawmaker Han Ki-ho wrote on Facebook that Starbucks "will become a stronghold for patriots who stand for conservatism and liberal democracy."

Cho Jin-man, a professor of political science at Duksung Women's University, cautioned against the escalating rhetoric. "The Starbucks marketing controversy is being inappropriately exploited as a marketing tool for the local elections," he said. "Starbucks must be held accountable, but politicians should choose their words carefully to avoid stoking hatred and creating innocent victims."

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY KIM JEONG-JAE. [[email protected]]