The Apple Store union battle has now expanded to Australia, with a series of Zoom briefings organized by Apple Together. It previously reached the UK.

Apple is still attempting to talk retail staff out of joining a union, though it has now made its in-store anti-union briefings “voluntary” …

Apple store union battle expands to Australia

Apple Together Australia has announced the latest in a series of three Zoom meetings, this one hosted by the Retail and Fast Food Workers Union (RAFFWU). It follows two earlier briefings by the Australian Services Union (ASU).

The latest meeting, scheduled for later this week, explains the ins and outs of industrial action.

The meeting takes place on August 25.

We have another event coming up! This time it is being hosted by RAFFWU and is open to all team regardless of union membership. 

A special all Apple worker Zoom call is being hosted by RAFFWU. It is the third such call after the first two hosted by the ASU. This meeting will take workers through how industrial action works, the steps needed to make action protected and lawful, how industrial action might influence Apple’s bargaining, and answer questions from workers.

RAFFWU is the only bargaining representative involved in negotiations at Apple that has ever organised industrial action in retail workplaces. RAFFWU helped bookshop members secure the best Enterprise Agreement in retail in 2021 through the direct action of members – including 6 months parental leave, substantially higher wages, double time on Sunday, job security and much more.

Apple Together Australia was formed to promote unionization with the aim of obtaining better pay for retail store workers.

In-store anti-union briefings continue

Retail staff tell us that in-store anti-union briefings are continuing, but that the company has made one change, to comply with the law.

As most of you know, Apple has seen significant change in the last ten years: the company has grown to an almost $3 trillion behemoth, profiting more than any other company in human history. This is a result of the incredible products and services it produces, but also because of people like you. You are the face of the company to the customer; you create owners and repair relationships.

Apple is not sharing that success with us. It is not appreciating what we do.

Tim Cook received a $100 million compensation package in 2021 for hitting 10 years as CEO; retail/AHA/RCC employees who reach 10 years receive a block of aluminium.

Apple has authorised a stock buyback program worth $90 billion, spending revenue on inflating the stock price rather than spending on employees.

Apple employees make the most revenue per employee than any other company in the world at $2.5 million per person; the median compensation at Apple is $68,254. The ratio between median employee compensation and the CEO is 1447 to 1.

There is simply no excuse for a company that is this successful, this progressive, — that aligns itself with Martin Luther King Jr — and this revered to under pay what it believes to be its most important people.

We can change this. We must change this.

By working together and joining a union, we will be able to force Apple to negotiate with us on things like pay, scheduling, and working conditions.

It is illegal to hold “captive meetings” to present anti-union messaging. These are meetings employees are expected to attend as part of their job.

Apple has been presenting anti-union arguments in Daily Download meetings. These are where the store leader runs through the latest metrics, notifies any changes to store procedures, and so on. All staff are expected to attend this meeting at the start of the shift.

Sources tell us that Apple has now started announcing that the anti-union part of the meeting is “voluntary,” and that staff can leave if they wish. This appears to be only technically true, however.

We’re told that Apple’s talking points are unchanged:

Got the talk during the download from our district manager, and they said it was optional. It clearly wasn’t as anyone who would have walked out of that BS talk would have made themselves an instant target.

  • Unions haven’t changed anything in stores that have unionized.
  • The pay increases announced by Apple following the unionization movement were coincidental and unrelated.
  • Unions slow down decision-making as Apple has to consult them.
  • Those voting against unions can be forced to join and pay dues.

There is understandably widespread skepticism on the first two points. On point three, organizers say this isn’t true, as unions don’t get involved in day-to-day decision-making – and in any case, Apple isn’t noted for fast responses.

The final point may or may not be true. Some unions do have policies that all hires must be union members, but this is far from universal.

Over on the corporate staff side, a new petition has started, calling on more flexible working arrangements.

Photo: Bryan Low/Unsplash