They say it’s a pour plan!
A new law would force Big Apple businesses to let customers use their own cups when ordering a beverage — but workers tasked with turning away massive bucket-sized mugs aren’t toasting the idea.
“I don’t get paid enough to fight with them,” one employee of a Midtown coffee shop, who asked not to be named, said Wednesday. “It could become a problem.”
The worker, however, said it was ultimately worth the hassle to help stop single use plastics from ending up in oceans and landfills.
The eco-friendly bill, sponsored by New York City Council Democratic Majority Leader Shaun Abreu, aims to save millions of dollars annually on waste and reduce the harmful effects of pollution.
“The city spends hundreds of millions of dollars on waste disposal each year, with single use plastics making up a significant portion. This bill will help reduce waste disposal cost,” Abreu told The Post.
“Businesses would have to spend less now on having to buy plastic cups.”
Coffee-lovers said opportunistic customers may try to score free extra ounces by bringing massive trendy cups such as Stanleys and Yetis.
“I think most people will take advantage of any situation. They apply loopholes and will try to steal more of their order,” Liv Besa, 36, a Starbucks customer from Queens. “With any law, people will find different ways of scheming. That’s human nature.”
Others said the idea is their cup of tea.
“For one, my cup holds [drinks] hotter longer, so that’s really the main reason why I switched out,” said Yaneke Arrington, 43, of Queens.
She brought a Yeti-brand mug to Starbucks, which already has a bring-your-own policy option in place.
Under the bill, all other businesses that serve drinks are required to post signs informing customers about the option to bring a reusable cup. Shops that fail to comply can be hit with fines up to $400.
Workers can also refuse customers who have cups that are too dirty or not the right size, under the bill.
Workers at bubble tea shops said cup-filling will be harder for them.
“I am not against the idea of it. But there are specific machines that only fit a specific dimension of cups and lids,” said an employee of a bubble tea shop.
“Different bubble tea services usually use plastic lids and the machine uses heat to seal it off. If you had one of those aluminum or a glass cup that wouldn’t work,” the employee said.
It’s generally easy to get the measurement of other drinks right, even with an extra-large reusable cup, employees said.
“We take home cups already but we keep it true to recipe. So if they bring a 16 ounce cup and it’s a 6 ounce drink we don’t fill it [all the way] up for them,” said Will Snodgrass, 23, works at a coffee shop in Midtown. “We measure everything back here.”
Environmental advocates cheered the legislation Wednesday.
“The idea behind it — that New Yorkers should have the choice to use their own reusable cups at restaurants and coffee shops —is a good idea and common sense. Each week it seems, we hear about another negative health impact from using plastics to package our food, especially hot food and drinks,” said Matt Gove of Reusable NYC. “Why shouldn’t New Yorkers have the choice?”
A hearing on the bill is expected in June.
