- The labor group seeking to represent Apple store workers in Atlanta has withdrawn its union vote request, citing intimidation, according to reports.
- The vote, scheduled for June 2, could have resulted in Apple’s first unionized store in the U.S.
- The decision comes days after the audio leak showed a senior Apple executive expressing concern about unionizing the company’s retail staff.
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Workers at an Apple store in Atlanta have reportedly withdrawn their union voting request just days before it took place, citing the tech giant’s alleged intimidation.
Retail staff at Apple’s Cumberland Mall were scheduled to vote June 2 on whether or not they wanted to be represented by the Communications Workers of America (CWA) union. Now, they are abandoning the union candidacy, along with the CWA’s claims that “Apple’s repeated violations of the National Labor Relations Act have made a free and fair election impossible,” Bloomberg reported.
“An overwhelming majority of Cumberland Mall store workers announced they were forming a union in April and applied for company recognition,” a CWA representative said in a statement, according to CNBC. “Since then, Apple has been conducting a systematic and sophisticated campaign to intimidate them and interfere with their right to form a union.”
In April, store workers became the first in the company to run for union elections, with more than 70% of workers likely to be eligible for the unit by signing union cards. If successful, the vote would have resulted in Apple’s first unionized store in the U.S.
Since then, news has pointed to allegations of anti-union tactics by Apple.
A few days ago, leaked audio recordings showed that Deirdre O’Brien, Apple’s senior vice president of retail and people, expressed concern about unionizing Apple’s 58,000 retail employees.
“I’m concerned about what it means to put another organization in the middle of our relationship, an organization that doesn’t really know Apple or our business, and most importantly, I don’t think it shares our commitment with you.” O’Brien, according to Vice, who released part of the recording.
In early May, Vice also reported that Apple sent a script of anti-union discussion points to store managers.
In addition to Atlanta, Apple’s stores in Maryland and Kentucky, as well as the company’s flagship location in New York City, have begun the syndication process.
The tech giant has raised the basic salary of retail workers from $ 20 to $ 22 an hour amid the push for store syndication, according to a note seen by The Wall Street Journal and CNBC. The increase also comes in the context of a hot labor market and rising inflation.
CWA and Apple representatives did not immediately respond to Insider’s requests for comment.
Are you an Apple retailer with a story to share? Email this reporter at sjackson@insider.com.