Apple’s Maryland store workers vote to authorize strike

Workers at Apple’s store in Towson, Maryland, have voted in favor of authorizing a strike, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (AIM) said in a statement late on Saturday.

The date for work stoppage has yet to be decided, according to the union, which represents Apple’s retail store workers in Maryland.

“The issues at the forefront of this action include concerns over work-life balance, unpredictable scheduling practices disrupting personal lives, and wages failing to align with the area’s cost of living,” IAM said in the statement.

“We will engage with the union representing our team in Towson respectfully and in good faith,” an Apple spokeswoman said.

In June 2022, Apple workers at Maryland voted to join the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers union, becoming the first retail employees of the tech giant to unionize in the United States.

Meanwhile, workers at Apple’s store in Short Hills, New Jersey, voted against unionizing, Bloomberg News reported on Saturday.

Communications Workers of America (CWA), which filed complaints with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) alleging illegal union-busting by Apple at the New Jersey store and others, blamed the defeat on the company’s behavior, the report said.

Apple retail staff at its New Jersey store had filed for union representation with Communications Workers of America on April 8, according to John Nagy, who is the operations lead at the Short Hills store and a member of the organizing committee.

Apple did not respond to requests for comment on the vote against unionization. CWA and the NLRB did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on the Bloomberg report on the New Jersey workers’ vote.