Thomas BabychanWorkers of an Apple Store in Towson, Maryland made history yesterday as they voted to form a union. The vote and result became significant as this will be the first-ever labour union at the tech giant, Apple.
According to National Labour Relations Board in America, 65 workers voted for the unions, while 33 workers voted against. These are preliminary numbers. In the last few months, there were demands and actions from employees in the company, which asked for union rights. Even in the corporate ranks of the company, there was support for unionization.
Slowly, what started as individual voices turned into a collective movement within the company, famously known as #AppleToo.
Since the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, there has been a series of votes across the United States for unionizing. While some major businesses have avoided unions in their businesses, few companies like Microsoft have come out in conditional support of unionizing.
The results of the vote marked a major victory for retail workers at the tech company. We expect more votes to happen soon at different Apple stores and other offices of the mobile giant.
Right to have a say
Christie Pridgen, an organiser of the vote, said that while wages and compensation were an issue, it was not the only one. For workers, it was about having an opinion on how the store is run. Christie Pridgen told CNN Business that she is working in the Apple Store for more than 8 years.
She added that it is important for workers to have a say in hours of work, scheduling of work and establishing safety protocols.
“We wanted a say in the policies that affect our lives,” she said.
At Amazon, workers at a warehouse in New York also voted overwhelmingly to form a union. (01/04/22) © ANP / EPA