Atlanta Apple Store Workers Accuse Company of “Union Busting”

Atlanta’s Apple Cumberland Mall - Image via Apple

18 MAY 2022 - Workers trying to form a union in Apple Cumberland Mall in Atlanta say Apple is actively trying to stop them. Specifically, a piece from 9 to 5 Mac says, “The Communications Workers of America (CWA) is accusing Apple of violating the National Labor Relations Act.” The CWA is the group with which Cumberland Mall employees are trying to unionize.

According to 9 to 5 Mac, Apple “has been reportedly holding captive audience meetings to counter an ongoing union drive at the Cumberland Mall store.” We heard about this last week when Motherboard posted a couple of pages of talking points store leaders were reportedly using to sew doubt around the idea of unionizing Apple locations. “According to The Verge," according to 9 to 5 Mac:

…captive audience meetings are a tactic where bosses require employees to attend meetings with anti-union messaging. It is generally allowed by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) until the 24-hour period before a union election.

Not anymore, it seems. 9 to 5 Mac cites a recent memo from NLRB general counsel Jennifer Abruzzo who says such meetings violate the National Labor Relations Act. According to the memo:

This license to coerce is an anomaly in labor law, inconsistent with the Act’s protection of employees’ free choice. It is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of employers’ speech rights.

What a way to start the day, which is apparently when this is happening. “Employees start the day with a ‘daily download’ meeting to be updated on what’s new within the company and store,” according to the report. Lately, the piece says, “management has increasingly incorporated topics like culture, benefits, and anti-union messaging into these meetings.”

Expect such stories to pick up over the next few weeks at least. The Apple Cumberland Mall union vote is set to run from 2 June through 4 June.