Apple store workers in Atlanta file for the company’s first union election

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

An Apple store in Atlanta has filed for a union election. The Communications Workers of America would represent the workers at the Cumberland Mall store. According to a news release, more than 70 percent of the group of about 100 eligible workers signed the union authorization cards.

The first Apple store in the US to be unionized would be if a majority of the workers voted to unionize. The petition will be reviewed by the NLRB.

Apple is a great place to work, but we know that the company can better live up to their ideals and so we are excited to be joining together with our coworkers to make this even better place to work.

Many hourly Apple employees face difficulties, including low wages and a high-stress workplace, according to a report from The Verge late last year. In February, the company increased benefits for its retail workers. Apple doesn't provide cost-of-living raises or access to equitable stock options for workers in Atlanta, they said.

"We work hard at Apple because we really believe in the products and the company and we want to make sure that every Apple worker is able to afford quality housing and basic living expenses."

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Some Apple store workers are involved in union drives, but not all of them. Retail Apple workers at the Grand Central Terminal store in New York City voted in February to affiliate with Workers United and are now collecting signatures to form a union. The same group is working with Starbucks stores on unionization efforts. The Grand Central workers are demanding a minimum wage of $30 per hour and other improvements.

The retail workers are part of a larger movement that felt exploited by corporations that saw huge financial windfalls. A group of workers at an Amazon warehouse on Staten Island voted earlier this month to become the first to unionize. The first-ever union at parent company Alphabet was formed last month by workers for a Google Fiber contractor in Missouri. They will be affiliated with the CWA and the Alphabet Workers Union.

On Wednesday, Apple didn't reply to a request for comment.