Workers at an Apple Store in the US have formed a union for the first time.
65 of 110 store employees in Towson, Maryland, voted in favor of the incorporation by 33 against it in a vote broadcast live by the responsible federal agency on Saturday (local time). Employees are asked to have their say on wages, working hours, and safety measures.
According to Saturday’s decision, Apple Store employees will form a division of the IAM Machine Builders Association once the result is approved by the federal agency.
IAM President Robert Martinez praised the courage of Apple employees. The victory represents the growing demands of unions at Apple Stores and across the US economy.
Apple told AFP in response to a question that the company declined to comment. Apple Store employees in several American cities have tried several times to form unions. But there was no vote before.
Apple’s director of human resources Deirdre O’Brien visited the Towson store in May — and indicated, among other things, that the union would complicate the relationship between Apple and its employees as an intermediary.
In the United States, labor unions have lost a great deal of strength and membership over the past few decades. However, in recent months they have had some symbolic successes.
For example, workers at two Starbucks stores in Buffalo, New York formed a union last December. In early April, workers at an Amazon warehouse on Staten Island in New York voted to become the company’s first union representative.
SDA
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