The move marks the latest win among unions who have been organizing workers both in the tech industry and at large retailers. Google employees began forming the Alphabet Workers Union in early 2021, and those efforts spread to a group of contractors in Missouri. Workers in Amazon warehouses meanwhile had several big union pushes in April. Those in a Staten Island, New York, location voted to become the first US workers at the company to successfully unionize, while workers in Alabama have failed to unionize.
According to a report from Bloomberg, the workers voted to join the Communication Workers of America, which has been pushing to form unions in other Apple stores as well.
Apple so far appears to have resisted some of the organizing, promising employees better schedule flexibility and longer breaks between shifts earlier this year. As it’s added benefits to non-union stores, the tech giant has also reportedly told union organizers they will have to bargain to receive them within unionized ones.
The National Labor Relations Board, meanwhile, filed a complaint against Apple earlier this month, accusing the tech giant of attempting to suppress union-organizing efforts in New York by questioning employees and preventing distribution of pro-union materials.
The CWA confirmed the vote win in a tweet. Apple didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment, but it told Bloomberg it was proud of its compensation programs, and the increases in starting pay for employees over the past few years. “We believe the open, direct and collaborative relationship we have with our valued team members is the best way to provide an excellent experience for our customers, and for our teams,” Apple said.
Unions have also made inroads at Trader Joe’s, Chipotle Mexican Grill and Starbucks, where more than 200 stores have now successfully voted in favor of union organizing.
Apple employees at an Oklahoma City store have voted to unionize, according to an announcement late Friday, marking the second retail location of the tech giant’s more than 270 stores in the US to do so.
