Apple’s anti-union policy allegedly violated US labor laws

After an explosion of attempts (some successful and some not so successful) at unionization by various Apple retail teams, the number of new orders appears to have reduced — in part due to the alleged anti-union policy of the company, which was heavily criticized by the prosecutors of the United States National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

As published by Bloombergcomments from company executives and policies imposed on employees were considered illegal by the organ. More precisely, the NLRB determined that “various labor, manual and confidentiality rules” imposed by Apple “tend to interfere, restrict or coerce employees” to exercise their unionization rights.

In addition, the agency “found merit in an indictment alleging that Apple’s statements and conduct — including by senior executives — also violated the National Labor Relations Act.” So unless Apple settles, the regional director of the council will file a complaint once morest the company.

The investigations stemmed from cases presented in 2021 by former employees Ashley Gjovik e Cher Scarlettwhich accused the company of maintaining work rules that “prohibit employees from discussing wages, hours or other terms or conditions of work”, in addition to policies that restrict the disclosure of “commercial information”, conversations with reporters, disclosure of remuneration from co-workers or posting unkind tweets.

At a hearing earlier this month, company attorney Jason Stanevich countered those accusations, saying Apple “fosters an open and inclusive work environment where employees are not only allowed, but encouraged, to share their feelings and thoughts. on a range of issues, from social justice topics to pay, equity and anything else they feel is an important cause to promote in the workplace.”

It is worth noting that complaints filed by NLRB prosecutors are reviewed by administrative law judges, whose decisions can be appealed. The agency does not have the ability to impose punitive damages or hold executives accountable for violations, but it can order companies to change workplace policies.

We’ll see what the next chapters of this story will be.