Apple Store workers in Atlanta drop bid for union vote, claim ‘intimidation’

The labor group trying to organize Apple employees at an Apple Retail Store in Atlanta is withdrawing its request for an election, alleging “illegal union-busting tactics” by the company.

Apple Retail Store
Apple Retail Store

Josh Eidelson for Bloomberg News:

The Communications Workers of America said it took the step “because Apple’s repeated violations of the National Labor Relations Act have made a free and fair election impossible,” according to an emailed statement Friday. The labor group also cited Covid-19 infections among staff at the store, located at the city’s Cumberland Mall, which it said “have raised concerns about the ability of eligible employees to vote and the safety of in-person voting.”

MacDailyNews Take: Pfft.

“Apple has conducted a systematic, sophisticated campaign to intimidate them and interfere with their right to form a union,” the CWA said. Under NLRB rules, a union’s choice to withdraw from an election generally means the vote is canceled and the union would have to wait at least six months before petitioning again to represent the same group of workers…

In complaints filed last week with the National Labor Relations Board, the CWA accused Apple of violating federal labor law by forcing workers in Atlanta and New York City to attend “captive audience” meetings about unionization.

Existing precedent allows companies to hold such meetings, but the labor board’s current general counsel, Jennifer Abruzzo, views them as inherently coercive and illegal. And she’s pursuing cases that could change the precedent.

MacDailyNews Take: “Existing precedent allows companies to hold such meetings.”

As we wrote ten days ago:

Apple’s activities are not really against the law at all. The NLRB’s current general counsel’s wishes don’t amount to a bucket of warm spit.

If Abruzzo wants to attempt to change the precedent in the future, it will not apply to what Apple’s done, is doing, and will continue to do to educate staff members of the ramifications of unionizing until or unless such law is established.

Congratulations to Apple and Apple retail workers in Atlanta in averting a big mistake!

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24 Comments

    1. Did you say bullied? Please provide concrete first hand examples of bullying, otherwise, can it.

      Apple presented their side in employee meetings according to the rule of law. NLRB also presented their side to Apple employees and the union says one side was coerced, but their side was not? 🤣

      And now the Union takes its ball and goes home irresponsibly leveling actions against Apple. Leftist whining is generally 🐂💩 and par for the course. Prove it in court…

      1. I agreed with you until you stated “Leftist whining…”

        Having been part of a union years ago and having had a parent that was part of a union for decades I can say from personal experience that unions currently and in the recent past have zero to do with “leftist” or “rightist” beliefs. Unions (not the rank and file, but senior individuals in the unions) are about themselves and the infrastructure they want to maintain. It’s a power and money thing. It has virtually nothing to do with leaning left or right. It is about whomever they can get to support their infrastructure while keeping it in place and potentially growing it.

        Once upon a time unions were a good thing. They brought many labor practices out of the dark ages. In today’s world unions are much, much more about the unions than they are about the workers.

        1. Replace ‘Leftist’ with ‘Democrat’ and he will be spot on.
          A large part of the power and money they derive is by greasing the Democrat machine.

          I’m sure an occasional Republican has benefited also, but by and large Unions are a wing of the Democrat Party.

          This is irrefutable.

          signed
          -Former IBEW member

        2. WILK

          Good to read you agreed with 99% of my post. 👍🏻

          I too belonged to unions early in my career and my father was a shop steward union leader for 25 years.

          “Unions currently and in the recent past have zero to do with “leftist” or “rightist” beliefs.”

          Agree 50%. In the past unions were mostly for ALL the people, same as the Democrat Party that ended after JFK.

          “It has virtually nothing to do with leaning left or right.”

          Hard to believe based on past writings particularly tech oriented, you would make such an outlandish FALSE statement that does not reflect reality.

          The reality is the MAJORITY of the most powerful unions, particularly the SACRED COW can do no wrong teachers unions, are as extreme far Left as the squad and college professors.

          They RULE schoolchildren more than they serve them as we have seen with mask mandates, shortened schedules, flip flopping between home and school learning, teaching extreme Leftist Critical Race Theory over the objections of parents and lawmakers nationwide. Certainly those are not practices from the Right.

          “In 2017, only 10.7 percent of workers belonged to unions compared to 20.1 percent in 1983.” —Open Secrets

          Attribute to the growing Leftist leanings of the majority of unions.

          “Total labor sector campaign contributions topped peaked during the 2016 election cycle, when groups and individuals poured more than $217 million into races nationwide. (Note Shawdowself) Almost 90 percent of those contributions went to Democrats, which is consistent with at least two decades of labor contribution trends.” —Open Secrets

          Any questions?…

      2. Careful GoeB, you just stated the case similar to the 2020 election where one side declared it was the securest election ever, so can it and the other side bringing the receipts with video, emails, geo-tagging, other incriminating documents and actions.

        And now the masturbating media gets off (literally) their pathetic ass to debunk what others who did the medias investigative work found. And had this been reverse, we all know the scum media would have hopped on their carbon producing private jets to learn the truth. Just like they pathetically did in Gore versus Bush Florida recount.

        1. … or you could decide to reign in your emotions a little bit, breathe a little slower and rewrite that in English. Whatever happened to reasoned debate on here or was that just a figment of my imagination, society is not headed to a good place.

      1. “Unions don’t do anything for anyone”? Don’t drink the corporate kool aid. Unions brought abut the 8-hour-day, racial equal pay, safety in work places, etc.

        1. Maybe 60-70 years ago they did but not today. Today they’re nothing more than Democratic mouthpieces bullying the people they “represent” and grifting their money to line their pockets.

    2. I’ve worked for union’s and I know first hand you are no longer an important asset to the company but a tool for the union. Unions do not believe in progress, they like things the way they are. If you are in a union you are not allowed to think, you do just one thing, and one thing only, and if try to innovate to make things better for the company are for yourself you get punish for do the right thing.

    1. So, Apple paying a minimum of nearly $46,000 a year (and higher in many parts of the U.S.) for starting retail workers is not a living wage? What kind of a life do you expect them to have? You expect a person fresh out of high school starting on the floor of the Apple store to make a lot more than that?

      1. There will never be an acceptable living wage. As wages increase, spending will increase and we will end up in the same spot in a couple of years. People do not save, they spend. This is why lottery winners go broke in 2 years time.

        People are used to living with their mommies and daddies until they are damn near 30 and having everything paid for them. When they finally venture out into the real world they don’t understand that all the niceties that they were accustomed to actually have to be paid for.

        1. Nor should it.

          These are starter jobs for high school/ college kids to learn work ethics and move on.
          The few who stay that are talented move up to run places like this and make substantially higher income.

          The rest complain the world owes them something…

      2. Living wage stats on the internet are between $15.00 ($31,360 year) and Al most $17.00 an hour $35,360 year). $46,000 and up for a retail employee is high and certainly livable. Sign me up…😉

  1. No. Living wage is a bs notion as it’s most often aligned w jobs, in a healthy-nonMarxist mindset, that aren’t meant for life-long support.

    “Harsh reality;” some/many jobs are never/should never be seen as a source f a living wage (long term).

    A bow to Bernie Sanders and Pals, that keep this irrationality alive.

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