The third US location to do so is the Penn Square Apple Store in Oklahoma City, where employees have filed with the National Labor Relations Board to hold a union election. Over 70% of the store’s salesmen, genius admins, techs, creatives, and operations specialists have signed cards indicating their interest in becoming Communications Workers of America members (CWA).
The NLRB requires 30% of employees to sign union cards as a necessary demonstration of interest in an election. At one of Apple Store Unionization’s US retail locations, Towson Town Center in Maryland, employees successfully voted to organize a union in June.
Apple Store Unionization Continues In Oklahoma
Other stores, including one in New York City and another in Louisville, Kentucky, have not reached the point where Apple Store Unionization might be held. The CWA canceled the Atlanta election because of Apple’s “continuous violations of the National Labor Relations Act,” claiming that it would be impossible to organize a fair election.
Deirdre O’Brien, vice president of people and retail at Apple, made the argument earlier this year that organizing an Apple Store Unionization would “place another entity amid our relationship” and that it “does not have a deep grasp of Apple or our business.” Although the union collaborated with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, the majority of organizers in Maryland were employed by the Apple Store.
Additionally, the business has been charged with violating labor laws by preventing employees from posting union flyers and holding captive audience meetings. Apple also addressed a key issue that some employees had: money. The business raised the starting hourly rate for its retail locations from $20 to $22 in May.
Given Apple’s ostensible opposition to unionization and the absence of elections or other visible union activity, it was simple to conclude that the movement to organize Apple’s retail stores had fizzled.