This year, Apple has seen an increasing number of negative comments from its retail staff about working conditions and compensation in its retail stores. Organizational efforts range from its Grand Central New York store to Atlanta, Oklahoma, Glasgow, UK and more. Now the US Labor Board has filed a formal complaint against Apple in New York.
Apple employees at the Grand Central store were among the first this year to work on an organizational effort in April.
Staff from other stores have followed suit in a number of other locations, although some like Atlanta have dropped the initiative. Part of that included allegations that Apple may have violated labor laws with its union-breaking tactics.
In June, Communications Workers of America (CWA) officially supported the efforts of Grand Central store workers to unionize, and in September those in Oklahoma began to do the same.
The US Labor Board sues Apple
Now, in a new development, the US Labor Board has filed a lawsuit against Apple in New York for conduct at its World Trade Center store. It seems that the complaint refers to possible attempts to break up the unions used by Apple.
Reported by Bloomberg, the US Labor Board’s complaint comes after the CWA raised some flags:
The complaint followed a CWA filing alleging Apple would interrogate staff, restrict the posting of union leaflets, and force employees to participate in mandatory anti-union speeches. The conduct took place in the Apple Store of the World Trade Center in New York, a CWA representative said in May.
When the CWA raised these concerns last spring, an Apple spokesperson gave a broad response stating that “the company deeply appreciates the contributions of its retail employees.”
With similar tactics allegedly being used in other Apple stores like Atlanta, time will tell if the US Labor Board will file more claims against Apple. And we’ll keep our eyes peeled for more details on the official lawsuit filed against Apple in New York.
