Apple joins ranks of notorious union busters Starbucks and Amazon, and more

Apple has officially joined the ranks of notorious union busters Starbucks and Amazon after the NLRB issued a complaint against Apple for violating the National Labor Relations Act and illegally interfering with Apple workers’ right to organize in Oklahoma City. The NLRB complaint comes in response to a recent Unfair Labor Practice filed by the Communications Workers of America.

According to the NLRB’s complaint, Apple has illegally:

• Interrogated employees who support the union
• Held captive audience meetings to persuade workers from organizing
• Threatened that organized stores wouldn’t receive the same improvements as unorganized stores
• Threatened employees with retaliation, and more.

Over recent months, Apple has escalated its union-busting tactics by illegally firing multiple workers in Kansas City, Oklahoma City and Houston. But in OKC, where Apple workers are bargaining their first union contract, workers remain united and undeterred.

Always remember: workers have a legal right to organize. The NLRB’S recent complaint against Apple acknowledges that companies cannot simply get off easy for breaking the law and intimidating workers out of their rights. Exercise your right to organize for better at work! Join other tech, game and digital workers with CODE-CWA.

Join us on Saturday, June 17 at 10AM PT/ 1PM ET or on Saturday, June 24 at 10am PT/1PM ET for an organizer training, where we talk about connecting with co-workers and union basics. 

Check the CODE-CWA organizer training program for upcoming classes!

This week is the debut of new Apple products as part of the 2023 Apple Worldwide Developers Conference. Apple TV workers on strike with the Writers Guild of America held actions around the country to call on Apple to do the right thing, come back to the table, and recognize they are nothing without their employees. Learn more by following WGAWest and WGAEast

More than 22,000 dock workers and members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) at U.S. West Coast seaports are on strike as they fight for fair pay. They have been in negotiations for a new contract for around 13 months. Read more here

June 2 was World Eating Disorders Action Day. Members of Helpline Associates United have continued to fight to provide quality care in the face of union-busting by a faulty, dangerous chatbot. “NEDA’s retaliation was no surprise. They failed us and our community by refusing to support a psychologically safe workplace, by firing us instead of recognizing our union, and by attempting to replace our humanity with a chatbot.” Read the full interview here

The workers, responsible for rating the effectiveness of Google search ads, were fired. The firings come after workers have organized several protests and actions to demand an end to poverty wages. Their efforts, which resulted in the first-ever raise for Google raters, demonstrate the need for all Google raters to stand shoulder to shoulder and demand their fair share. Read the full statement from Alphabet Workers Union here

On May 30th, Instagram disabled and banned the Starbucks Workers United account, claiming it was “pretending to be someone else.” With over 40,000 followers, the banning of this account was but another case of corporate censorship of one of the most highly watched union movements in this country. Read SWU’s statement here

10th June, 1963 – President Kennedy signs into law the Equal Pay Act, mandating equal pay for women who are performing the same jobs as men.

19th June, 1865 – The official date in which Union soldiers landed in Galveston, Texas with news that the Civil War had ended and slaves were free. Celebrations of June 19, otherwise known as Juneteenth, stem from “Decoration Day,” a day in which freed slaves and others commemorated the sacrifice of soldiers, Black and white, who fought to defeat slavery. As of June 19th, 2021, Juneteenth has been recognized as a federal holiday in the U.S.

19th June, 1912 – The eight-hour work day is adopted for federal employees.

Roll the Union On by Pete Seeger and Chorus

We’re gonna roll, we’re gonna roll,

We’re gonna roll the union on

We’re gonna roll, we’re gonna roll,

We’re gonna roll the union on

If the boss gets in the way, we're gonna roll right over them

Gonna roll right over them, gonna roll right over them

If the boss gets in the way, we're gonna roll right over them

We’re gonna roll the union on!

Honorary mention, in light of Juneteenth:

Wade in the Water, a historic slave hymn, remade by Ramsay Lewis

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Communications Workers of America, AFL-CIO, CLC.