Strike at Apple Australia cheers unionists in US and Europe

Dozens of Apple workers in Australia walked out of work on Tuesday after talks over wages and working conditions reached an impasse, representing the latest breach in the tech giant’s armor, which is facing a unionization movement that has been gaining strength in the United States and Europe.

The strike in question is small. About 150 retail workers among Apple’s nearly 4,000 employees in Australia voted in favor of a one-hour shutdown. Then, starting Wednesday, they will refuse to do a variety of jobs, including installing screen protectors, repairing AirPods and handling deliveries.

But the strike is important in symbolic terms. After years of labor harmony, Apple retail employees in the United States managed to overcome the company’s resistance and mobilized in a wave of pandemic-era protests, part of a broader expansion of labor organizing efforts in retail chains. , restaurants and technology companies.

In June, an Apple store in Towson, Maryland, became the company’s first in the United States to unionize, with workers saying they wanted more say in pay, working hours and career structure. In the same month, an Apple store in the UK also unionized for the first time. A second store in Oklahoma City voted to unionize on Friday, and union leaders said workers at more than two dozen Apple stores across the country had expressed interest in forming unions.

Outside an Apple store in the Australian state of New South Wales on Tuesday, about two dozen workers carried signs calling for free weekends and “a bite of the apple”.

Union leaders in Australia, where strikes in the retail sector are rare, said they were energized by labor activity in the United States.

The strike is “an important example of unions establishing a presence in an industry or workplace, like that of a tech giant, where that hasn’t happened until now, here or in the United States,” said Anthony Forsyth, a professor of labor law at RMIT University in Melbourne.

It is noteworthy that in Australia “there is a union that is pushing Apple a lot harder and going a little further than what’s been happening in the United States,” he said.

In Australia, Apple offered workers a floor wage 17% above the industry minimum, which would represent hourly pay of at least $17.35.

The three unions involved in the negotiations rejected the proposal and accused Apple of trying to force a hasty vote.

The deal would amount to “a pay cut in practice” due to inflation, according to one of the unions, the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association. The organization also accused Apple of obstructing unions as they sought to conduct surveys of workers in preparation for the negotiations, a tactic common in the United States but less used in Australia.

While all three unions are negotiating with Apple, only the Retail and Fast Food Workers Union has decided to strike after its members voted in favor of the action last week.

The union is demanding a minimum pay of A$31 per hour, similar to what the company’s employees in the US receive. The organization is also seeking guarantees that workers will receive two consecutive days off per week, as well as the right of part-time workers to set their work days and hours.

Employees don’t have much influence on their schedule, which makes it difficult to have a life outside of work, said Josh Cullinan, the union’s national secretary.

Apple rejected the claim that it tried to rush the conclusion of a deal. The company says its part-time workers are entitled to specify four or more days of availability per week and that they are given two weeks’ notice of schedules.

A company spokesperson said in an emailed statement that Apple was “proud to reward our valued team members in Australia with strong compensation and exceptional benefits. Apple is among the highest paying employers in Australia, and We’ve made many significant improvements to our industry-leading benefits, which include new educational and health and wellness programs.”

In the United States, Apple has been trying to circumvent protests at its stores by raising wages, and has been telling workers that unionization will result in fewer promotions and inflexible hours. Labor leaders said Apple’s efforts contributed to the recent suspension of a planned union vote in Atlanta.

The US National Labor Relations Board also released a complaint alleging that Apple interrogated retail workers and prevented them from posting union materials in the break room, as they are entitled to do.

Actions in the United States have had a significant influence on the way the talks have unfolded in Australia, said Cullinan, the union secretary, adding that they had “influenced, encouraged and excited” Australian workers.

He said he believed Apple had tried to rush the approval of the new deal with the aim of “perpetuating current conditions and excluding unions” by preventing any potential further labor mobilization.

“We believe this is being driven by their experience in the United States and a deep fear that workers will regain a small amount of power in their workplaces,” he said.

Cullinan acknowledged that the number of striking workers was modest, but noted that of the three unions involved, the Retail and Fast Food Workers Union represents the largest number of Apple workers. The move will have symbolic resonance, he added, because it is “the largest of its kind in the history of Apple in Australia.”

Union members also voted in favor of a 24-hour strike if Apple tries to bring the deal to a vote without union approval.

In Australia, the unionization of Apple workers is a relatively recent development. When the company’s last collective agreement with its employees was negotiated, in 2014, there was no involvement of unions. What has changed since then is the creation of a new union, the Retail and Fast Food Workers Union.

Translation by Paulo Migliacci