Skip to main content

Home  »  Amazon NewsUS Employment News   »   Tech giants Apple and Amazon are facing soaring labor movements

Tech giants Apple and Amazon are facing soaring labor movements

Apple

Labor movements have gained momentum in behemoths like Apple and Google.

An Apple store voted to unionize on Friday, October 14.

Unrest is currently sweeping across Amazon delivery centers in Southern California.

READ MORE: APPLE IS WITHHOLDING NEW PERKS FROM UNIONIZED WORKERS

Long thought to be immune to unionization, Apple's employees in Oklahoma City successfully voted to join the Communications Workers of America.

It is the second of the company's roughly 270 US locations to unionize.

Meanwhile, Amazon employees in San Bernardino, California, went on strike on Friday.

The firm will be put to the test on Tuesday when the US National Labor Relations Board counts ballots for an election at a facility in Albany, New York.

READ MORE: AMAZON WORKERS PROTESTED OVER PAY AND WORKING CONDITIONS IN ILLINOIS

Apple stores have now become one of the most prominent emblems of labor inroads in the tech world.

In response to unionization efforts, it has raised wages and offered extra benefits.

The Cupertino company raised its nationwide minimum retail pay to $22 per hour in May.

Just last week, it unveiled a slew of perks but informed its unionized staff that it would not be granted without first negotiating.

READ MORE: AMAZON WORKERS SEEK TO UNIONIZE IN A CALIFORNIA WAREHOUSE

The CWA claimed the iPhone maker also organized a series of anti-union meetings in the run-up to the election.

The complaint states management intimidated employees and told them that organizing would be pointless.

When the NLRB counted the ballots Friday night, it wasn't close: Fifty-six workers voted in favor of the union, while 32 voted against it.

The CWA is now preparing to bargain on behalf of the staff at the store, which is located in Oklahoma City's posh Penn Square Mall.

READ MORE: APPLE HIT BY LAWSUIT OVER ALLEGED ANTI-UNION EFFORTS IN A NEW YORK CITY STORE

Apple responded to the labor win and said an “open, direct and collaborative relationship” with workers was the best way to serve customers and the workers themselves.

The company said: “We’re proud to provide our team members with strong compensation and exceptional benefits.”

The firm has made it known that it opposes unions.

It has warned against putting “another organization in the middle of our relationship.”

Workers at a warehouse in Moreno Valley, California, recently filed paperwork to join the fledgling Amazon Labor Union.

Need Career Advice? Get employment skills advice at all levels of your career

Dozens of workers at the San Bernardino air hub went on strike on Friday, seeking better working conditions and $5 per hour hikes.

They marched in front of the facility, which employs over 1,500 people, holding placards and chanting "living wages now."

Workers claimed they gave Amazon until October 10 to raise starting salaries to around $22 per hour.

The firm said hourly pay at its facilities ranges from $16 to $26, depending on the role and location.

Labor movements have ramped up at several large corporations, including  Starbucks, Trader Joe's, and Chipotle Mexican Grill.

Source: Bloomberg

Follow us on YouTubeTwitterLinkedIn, and Facebook.