Starbucks bought a $45 million corporate jet last month at about the same time it told employees that it is reconsidering how much it will match in their 401(k) plans this year. The new jet, a Gulfstream 550, spent its first two weeks under Starbucks ownership in Hawaii, according to flight records at FlightAware.com.

Starbucks bought a $45 million corporate jet last month at about the same time it told employees that it is reconsidering how much it will match in their 401(k) plans this year.

The new jet, a Gulfstream 550, spent its first two weeks under Starbucks ownership in Hawaii, according to flight records at FlightAware.com.

Starbucks ordered the jet three years ago, according to spokeswoman Deb Trevino. She said the Seattle coffee company determined canceling delivery would be too expensive. She declined to say who took the jet to Hawaii over the holidays, but said it was a combined personal and business trip. She pointed out that Starbucks policy requires employees to reimburse the company for personal use of the jet. That policy was instituted in fiscal 2007, when Chairman Howard Schultz reimbursed the company $400,919 for flights.

"That's not an acceptable answer in 2009," said Nell Minow, editor at The Corporate Library, a watchdog-research firm. "It's not acceptable to use it for anything but the most efficient possible business use."

Companies should be transparent about which employees use the jet and where they fly, she said. They also should not be allowed to make personal trips even if they reimburse their companies, because the reimbursements often are not sufficient.

While many companies have corporate jets, Starbucks' new arrival comes at a delicate time. Plunging profits are forcing the company to make unprecedented cost cuts, including closing 616 U.S. stores last year and slashing thousands of jobs.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008602907_starbucks08.html

Sphere: Related Content