(Bloomberg) -- Starbucks Corp. employees in Mesa, Arizona, voted to unionize their store, expanding a fledgling labor foothold that began in New York state in December.

The National Labor Relations Board counted ballots Friday during a virtual gathering, with the union winning 25 to 3. If the agency certifies the results, Starbucks would be legally required to negotiate with the union, Workers United, over working conditions at the Mesa restaurant.

This would be the third unionized Starbucks location out of thousands of corporate-run U.S. stores. The coffee chain is facing petitions from baristas at more than 100 stores, meaning there could be a tidal wave of additional elections in the months ahead. 

Starbucks had tried to derail the counting of votes in Arizona and asked the labor board last month to either halt the election or impound the ballots while considering the company’s argument that store-by-store votes disenfranchised workers at other nearby locations. The NLRB rejected that argument this week, establishing a precedent that the agency could use to more swiftly rule against similar future appeals elsewhere in the country.

Employees’ ballots at three more stores in New York await counting, and regional NLRB officials have ordered elections to be held at stores in Seattle and Knoxville, Tennessee.

©2022 Bloomberg L.P.