So far, Apple has managed to dissuade employees in Apple Stores from forming local union groups. In the US state of Maryland, the mechanical engineering union IAM has pulled off a coup: the 110 employees of a shop are now organizing themselves there.
Workers at an Apple store in the US have formed a union for the first time. 65 of the 110 employees at the Towson, Maryland, store voted in favor of the incorporation, with 33 votes against in a vote broadcast live by the federal agency responsible for this matter. The employees demand participation in wages, working hours and safety measures.
As a result of Saturday's decision, Apple store employees will form a section of the IAM machine builders' union once the federal agency confirms the outcome. IAM chairman Robert Martinez praised the "courage" of Apple employees. The victory reflects the "growing demands for unions in Apple stores and in various sectors of the economy in our nation".
When asked, Apple said the company "refused to comment". Apple store employees in several US cities have tried several times to form unions. But there had never been a vote before. Apple HR chief Deirdre O'Brien visited the Towson store in May - and pointed out, among other things, that a union would "complicate" the relationship between Apple and its employees as a "mediator".
In the US, trade unions had lost a great deal of power and membership over the past few decades. In recent months, however, they have achieved 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.
