USA: Success for the first union in the Apple Store

U.S. Most employees at the Apple Store have voted to form a union, the first of its kind for a technology company that has so far sought to encourage union efforts.

Of the 110 employees at the Maryland store in Towson, 65 voted in favor and 33 against, according to a live broadcast Saturday by the federal agency responsible for overseeing the ballot.

A group of employees called the AppleCORE (Apple Retail Employees Alliance) campaigned for the union. They need to have a voice in determining pay, working hours and safety measures.

The result for Saturday is that workers in the store, who have been called to vote since Wednesday, will have to form a branch of the IAM union once the company certifies the results.

Echoing the success of the Amazon warehouse in New York in April, another technical team tried to resist regulatory efforts.

This is not the first attempt to merge the Apple Store, but it is the first attempt to result in a poll.

Apple’s director of distribution and human resources, Deitre O’Brien, came to the store in May to talk to staff.

“It’s your right to join a union, but it’s your right not to join a union,” he told them, according to an audio clip aired on the Vice site.

He promised that having an intermediary would complicate the relationship between Apple and its employees.

The California team, contacted by AFP, declined to comment on the news.

Having fallen for decades, the unions have had several symbolic successes in the United States in recent months, beginning with the outspoken support of Joe Biden.

The formation of the first union in Starbucks Coffee, which is managed directly by the chain in the United States in December sparked excitement, while staff, mostly young people and academics, rallied in NGOs, universities, museums and the media.

At Amazon, employees of the New York warehouse created a surprise by voting in favor of forming a union in early April, the first time for the group in the United States.

But the company overturned the decision and called for a second referendum.