Apple Faulted for Stifling Unionization Efforts at NYC Store

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruled against Apple for illegally questioning employees about potential unionization at its World Trade Center store in New York City. This decision upholds a 2022 ruling by an administrative law judge.

Key Points:

• Apple prevented staff from placing pro-union flyers in the break room and confiscated existing ones.
• Management allegedly questioned employees about their support for unionization, which is considered "protected concerted activity" under U.S. labor law.
• The NLRB ordered Apple to stop these practices immediately.
• This is the first NLRB ruling against Apple, though other cases involving potential anti-union tactics are ongoing.
• Apple has not yet commented on the ruling.

Wider Unionization Efforts:

This incident is part of a larger trend of Apple retail employees seeking union representation. Stores in Short Hills, New Jersey, Oklahoma City, and Towson, Maryland have all seen unionization efforts, with the latter two locations successfully forming unions.

The NLRB previously found evidence of Apple using mandatory anti-union meetings with coercive tactics at an Atlanta store in late 2022.