HIGHLIGHTS
Apple shop employees voted last week to become a union.
It is the first Apple shop in the US to vote to organise because of this.
The workers decided to join the IAM.
According to a person familiar with the company's plans, Apple will not contest the outcomes of a vote by employees to form a union at its Towson, Maryland, store and wants to engage in the negotiation process in good faith.
The shop's employees almost two-thirds of the time last week, making it the first Apple store in the US to vote to organise.
By majority vote, the staff members decided to enlist in the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM). An inquiry for comments was not immediately answered by the IAM.
Workers at several Starbucks and Amazon sites also recently voted to unionise, making Apple one of many significant American corporations whose workforces have moved to do so.
Earlier this year, Apple workers in a Georgia shop planned to vote on unionisation but decided against it. Union leaders then filed a complaint saying that Apple had pressured its workers. Two other Apple stores in New York have employees who are considering joining a union.
According to sources cited by Bloomberg News earlier this month, Apple has also taken steps, such as allowing retail employees to have flexible work schedules in the face of unionisation attempts.
According to the article, which included quotes from workers, the corporation informed personnel at select outlets that scheduling adjustments will go into place soon. The minimum duration between shifts will increase from 10 to 12 hours as part of the revisions.
A request for comment from Reuters was not immediately answered by Apple. The iPhone manufacturer informed Reuters a week ago that Apple will increase compensation for its US staff to $22 (about Rs. 1,700) per hour or more.
Last year, some current and former employees of the Cupertino, California-based company—known for its reserved culture—criticized it online for its working circumstances.
Amid a wave of labour action at other large companies, employees at Apple's Atlanta shop submitted a petition to hold a union election in April, hoping to become the company's first US store to unionise.
