A Maryland Apple store’s unionized employees decided on Saturday to approve a walkout, which, if it materializes, would be the country’s first labor dispute against the retailer.
Another first for the US locations of the iPhone manufacturer, the Towson, Maryland, Apple store’s staff decided to unionize in 2022.
However, a contract has not yet been decided upon.
“Following over a year of negotiations with Apple management that yielded unsatisfactory outcomes,” union members are “signaling their collective demand for meaningful change,” a union statement said.
“The issues at the forefront of this action include concerns over work-life balance, unpredictable scheduling practices disrupting personal lives, and wages failing to align with the area’s cost of living.”
The Towson store has about 100 employees, 98 percent of whom voted in favor of the work stoppage.
The next negotiation meeting is scheduled for May 21, though a strike could come before that.
Meanwhile, employees at another of the California-based company’s stores, in New Jersey, voted down a unionization effort over the weekend.
Apple did not answer an AFP request for comment right away.
Apple has been the target of multiple complaints to the federal labor regulator, the National Labor Relations Board, alleging that the company is attempting to dissuade employees from organizing.
Unionization attempts are generally viewed negatively by US tech companies, most notably Amazon.
On September 15, the day of the iPhone 15’s release, almost 25% of French employees at Apple stores went on strike to demand a pay increase at least equal to inflation.
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