According To A US Labor Watchdog, Apple Broke Worker’s Rights By Enforcing Harsh Work Regulations:
According to Source, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has decided that Apple’s policies regarding leaks are unconstitutional. A spokeswoman for Apple stated in a statement that the company’s actions and leadership remarks “tend to interfere with, impede or force workers” from exercising their rights.
The regional office of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) “discovered merit to 4 charges accusing that varied work regulations, handbook guidelines, & secrecy rules at Apple breached Section 8(a)(1) of the National Labor Relations Act because they fairly tend to interfere to, restrain, or coerce staff in the exercise of their right to protected concerted activity,” an NLRB spokesperson confirmed to Ars today.
What Is Section 8(a)(1):
“To interfere with, impede, or compel workers in the use of the rights protected in Section 7” is an unlawful employment activity under Section 8(a)(1). Possibly,
- If workers support, join, or choose a union, threaten to close the workplace, cut benefits, or make working conditions worse.
- Threaten workers with negative repercussions for protected, coordinated behavior. (Work is “concentrated” if it is done with or for other workers). It encompasses situations when one employee initiates, induces, or prepares for collective action or submits a team complaint to management. Employee interests are “protected.” Misconduct may void the Act’s protection for concerted employee action.
- Offer perks to non-union workers.
- During union organizing, seek employee complaints to imply benefits. You may continue soliciting employee complains if you did so before the campaign.
- Benefit workers during a union organizing drive to get them to vote against by the union.
- Withhold changes in salaries or advantages throughout a union helping to organize initiative that might have been decided to make had the union not come to the scene, unless you communicate clearly to workers that the transformation will occur whether or not they select the union and also that your entire objective in postponing the change is to avoid appearing to influence the election.
- Force workers to discuss union membership. (If questioning is coercive and hence illegal depends on who asks the question, where, and how what data is sought; whether the asked worker is an open and engaged union support; and whether the asking happens in a context of other unfair practices.)
- If you allow non-work-related conversations, don’t let workers discuss about the union.
- Unless you follow specific procedures, poll your workers about union support. No unfair labor practices or coercion. You must also (1) inform workers that the poll’s objective is to assess if the union has majority support (and that is your purpose); (2) assure employees against retribution; and (3) conduct the poll via secret ballot.
- Monitor union activity. (“Spying” is unusually observing action. Supervisors may observe union activities in working areas without “spying.”
- Make it seem you’re monitoring union activity.
- Record calm union or even other protected employee activity.
- Request campaign videos from staff.
- Establish, maintain, or execute work regulations that fairly restrict employee Act rights.
- Unless necessary for business, don’t let off-duty staff into nonworking areas.
- Unless necessary, ban union buttons, t-shirts, as well as other symbols.
- Communicate that union selection is pointless.
- Discipline or fire a union-represented employee who refuses an investigatory interview without a representation.
- Unless you give guarantees, interview workers to develop your unfair labor practice defense. The employee must understand the questions, be assured of no repercussions, and volunteer. Questioning must be non-coercive and devoid of employer anti-union sentiment. Questioning must not exceed what is necessary to accomplish its legitimate objective. You may not inquire about other union concerns, the worker’s personal state of mind, or Act-protected employee rights.
- Start, sign, or support a union-disaffiliation or desertification petition.
- Dismiss, constructively ejection, suspend, layoff, neglect to recall from layoff, demote, punish, or otherwise penalize workers for protected, coordinated activity.
Cher Scarlett & Ashley Gjøvik Filed complained:
Former workers Cher Scarlett & Ashley Gjøvik complained, prompting the decision. “Apple work regulations forbid workers from discussing salary, hours or even other terms or circumstances of employment,” Scarlett said, violating labor laws. Gjøvik said CEO Tim Cook’s communication threatening leakers breached federal law. Gjøvik said Apple’s regulations barring employees from exposing corporate information, talking to media, and other acts were unlawful.
“We do not tolerate leaks of classified info, whether that’s product IP or the specifics of a closed meeting… individuals who leak sensitive data do not belong here,” Cook stated in the email. Tech Crunch said it was in reaction to a journalist tweeting a company-wide meeting live.
Apple Executives Broke Federal Law:
After more than a year, the labor board determined that Apple and its leadership breached federal law by discouraging workers from working together.
The labor board’s representative said Tuesday that Apple’s work and confidentiality regulations “interfere with, limit or compel workers” from collective action. The board will file a formal lawsuit against Apple & convene a hearing if the parties cannot compromise.
Apple’s Atlanta anti-union meetings violated federal law, the NLRB determined. Apple pledged to investigate its labor policies in an SEC filing earlier this month.