Slog
News & ArtsTuesday, November 8, 2011
Tech / Retail Apple Tries to Nip Unions in the Bud
Posted by Paul Constant on Tue, Nov 8, 2011 at 1:52 PM
Starting today, Apple Store managers will have to undergo euphemistically-titled "union awareness" training, to learn about attempts by employees to unionize.
I underwent union awareness training twice—once at Borders, and once during my awful month at Walmart. In my long, awkward career as a retail employee, those union awareness training videos (at Walmart) and meetings (at Borders) were the most awkward part of those experiences. The videos sucked because poorly paid actors in Walmart outfits were reading a dumb script about how evil unions were and I was paid Colorado's minimum wage (I think it was $4.25 at the time—Colorado is a work-for hire state) to sit in a room and watch it. The meetings sucked because the lame-ass manager Ann Arbor had sent to get my store on track kept talking about all the things he wasn't allowed to say to us. (It's been a long time, but I recall him saying a number of variations of this statement: "I can't legally tell you to not vote to form a union, but if I could legally tell you not to form a union, I'd say you should take a look at the other Borders stores that unionized. Because if you did that, you'd see it doesn't help your salaries and they take dues out of your check, so you wind up making even less. But I can't legally talk about that, so I won't.") It was weaselly, nasty, and dumb.
So, you know, way to go, Apple! You're joining a mighty firmament of corporations that have mistreated and misled their retail employees. Heaven forbid those people representing you to the public every day should try to use collective bargaining to make their jobs a little more profitable and comfortable. Good to see you're dead-set on treating your ground-level employees like shit. I bet your anti-union videos will be really aesthetically pleasing, at least.
2
Have you seen the video? Could be they simply want to train managers how to follow the law, and prevent their managers from being like your lame-ass Ann Arbor manager. It's probably not the case, but you never know.
Since it's the same training their current managers have already been getting, seems like someone could try to get an interview with an Apple store manager who's already been through the training and report on it.
Since it's the same training their current managers have already been getting, seems like someone could try to get an interview with an Apple store manager who's already been through the training and report on it.
4
I can't wait until this video is leaked to the Internets. Maybe the Stranger can contact an employee at the U Village store? (wicked grin)
6
How dare you slander Apple! Wait, does that mean being anti-union is now cool? Can I get a union-buster app on my iPhone?
8
I don't think work for hire means what you think it means. It is a term applied when artist and writer types transfer the rights to their output to their employers. It does not apply to retail employees and has nothing to do with minimum wages.
Perhaps you mean right-to-work, except Colorado isn't a right-to-work state. Or perhaps you mean at will employment, but so is Washington, and it has the highest minimum wage in the nation.
Perhaps you mean right-to-work, except Colorado isn't a right-to-work state. Or perhaps you mean at will employment, but so is Washington, and it has the highest minimum wage in the nation.
9
Look for Apple stores to be shut down in Canada if they keep this up.
Kind of a shame, I bought my Apple II+ and it's software in Canada ...
Kind of a shame, I bought my Apple II+ and it's software in Canada ...
11
I'm not sure that snide hipster-nerds that stand around in a climate controlled room need a union. When you're in a meat cooler or boom lift all day we can talk.
12
I just want to weigh in on the comment about how poorly the actors are paid for those silly industrial videos you have to watch.
While the scripts are indeed silly and almost universally unplayable the actor is actually very well paid for their work. A half a days work on most industrials will pull in $400. A full day can get you up to $1000.
I laid down one of those shoots in an hour and since they have to pay by the half day or day (your agent should never negotiate a per hour fee) I was paid a handsome $400.
I am thankful for all of those shitty industrial videos I shoot because they support the shitty money I make in the theater where I can make real art.
While the scripts are indeed silly and almost universally unplayable the actor is actually very well paid for their work. A half a days work on most industrials will pull in $400. A full day can get you up to $1000.
I laid down one of those shoots in an hour and since they have to pay by the half day or day (your agent should never negotiate a per hour fee) I was paid a handsome $400.
I am thankful for all of those shitty industrial videos I shoot because they support the shitty money I make in the theater where I can make real art.
13
@ 8 is right about at will employment. I'm not sure the minimum wage matters, though - that was enacted in 2006, and I think Paul must have lived here in the 90s if minimum wage was that low when he did.
16
@12:
Yes, it's great to be making union scale on a non-union shoot, isn't it? But let me ask you this: Do those shitty industrial videos pay you as an employee, or as an independent contractor? I hope it's the former, because if not, not only is the employer violating state and federal labor law, but that "handsome $400" starts getting gobbled up faster than Vienna Beefs at a hot dog eating contest, what with your agent's commission (what are they charging you? 15%? 20%? 25%?), employer-contributed FICA taxes, travel expenses, wardrobe upkeep, etc., etc., coming directly out of the money you earned, instead of being paid by the employer on top of your session fee.
Also, I hope you remember to save about 15% of that fee, because that's roughly what you're going to have to pay out come April when you do your taxes, since again, none of that was deducted by the employer and sent to the IRS, so it's up to you to make those payments yourself.
And I certainly hope they remembered to pay you on-time, because once you've done the work, it's pretty tough to get them to cough up the dough in a timely fashion, even though rent's due in a couple of days, because you know, there's nothing to prevent them from holding onto your earnings a little longer, and nobody on your side to go after them if they do.
Yes, it's great to be making union scale on a non-union shoot, isn't it? But let me ask you this: Do those shitty industrial videos pay you as an employee, or as an independent contractor? I hope it's the former, because if not, not only is the employer violating state and federal labor law, but that "handsome $400" starts getting gobbled up faster than Vienna Beefs at a hot dog eating contest, what with your agent's commission (what are they charging you? 15%? 20%? 25%?), employer-contributed FICA taxes, travel expenses, wardrobe upkeep, etc., etc., coming directly out of the money you earned, instead of being paid by the employer on top of your session fee.
Also, I hope you remember to save about 15% of that fee, because that's roughly what you're going to have to pay out come April when you do your taxes, since again, none of that was deducted by the employer and sent to the IRS, so it's up to you to make those payments yourself.
And I certainly hope they remembered to pay you on-time, because once you've done the work, it's pretty tough to get them to cough up the dough in a timely fashion, even though rent's due in a couple of days, because you know, there's nothing to prevent them from holding onto your earnings a little longer, and nobody on your side to go after them if they do.
17
@14: Citation needed. I've heard about unfair and unsafe labor practices, but you're asserting that they (Foxconn, I guess) don't even pay them? Can you link to anything substantiating that claim?
18
@16
My agent would never agree to anything that was illegal or that took away from my negotiated fee. Most of the work I get she's actually usually able to negotiate her commission on top of my fee so the $400 goes directly into my pocket but I've never had to pay travel, wardrobe or anything else for any shoot union or non-union. All industrials where I've worn my own clothes I've been paid around $20. If I have to go in for a fitting I usually get paid $100 for my time.
My agent would never agree to anything that was illegal or that took away from my negotiated fee. Most of the work I get she's actually usually able to negotiate her commission on top of my fee so the $400 goes directly into my pocket but I've never had to pay travel, wardrobe or anything else for any shoot union or non-union. All industrials where I've worn my own clothes I've been paid around $20. If I have to go in for a fitting I usually get paid $100 for my time.
19
@ 15, my working life began in 1986, when I turned 16. It was $3.35/hr then, and it wasn't raised until Bill Clinton took office early in 1993. After that, it wasn't raised during W's administration.
That alone is reason never to vote Republican, at least not for legislative and chief executive positions.
That alone is reason never to vote Republican, at least not for legislative and chief executive positions.
21
I watched one of those videos at the beginning of my brief employment at Target... they always seem so creepy.
22
@21 Haha, for me that was the best part of an otherwise embarrassing three month stint at Target.
23
@20 I wasn't including all retail workers in that statement. I hope to god that a union goes through at Wal-Mart someday.
24
@18:
All that is well-and-good, sounds like you're agent is earning their 10/20/30%.
But, if the producer isn't giving you a W-4 to sign at the beginning of the shoot, then they're hiring you as an independent contractor, which you are not. By every definition: federal, state, county & municipal, you should be properly identified as an employee, and the employer should be deducting federal taxes and concurrently making their own contributions to FICA, WA L&I, etc.
Anything else is a blatant violation of established labor law, and they're making YOU pay THEIR contributions from your own pocket. And the ONLY reason they get away with it is because nobody reports them.
All that is well-and-good, sounds like you're agent is earning their 10/20/30%.
But, if the producer isn't giving you a W-4 to sign at the beginning of the shoot, then they're hiring you as an independent contractor, which you are not. By every definition: federal, state, county & municipal, you should be properly identified as an employee, and the employer should be deducting federal taxes and concurrently making their own contributions to FICA, WA L&I, etc.
Anything else is a blatant violation of established labor law, and they're making YOU pay THEIR contributions from your own pocket. And the ONLY reason they get away with it is because nobody reports them.
26
CNET updated the story to say it's not related to retail. http://news.cnet.com/8301-27076_3-573202…
27
I think that the right to unionize and the idea of unions is a very good thing. But why is it that every actual union I've ever encountered or heard of in detail has sucked? There have been dues that border on ridiculous for the level of pay of the members, layoff bumping practices based only on seniority and not merit, and the members have tended to adopt an attitude of entitlement and a certain stuckness about growing professionally or pitching in in a crisis.
I swear, I've really wanted to like and support unions. But being confronted with the reality of them has almost changed my mind. Almost...
I swear, I've really wanted to like and support unions. But being confronted with the reality of them has almost changed my mind. Almost...
28
@25 - Citation needed.
Germany is an economic powerhouse, and has strong unions. They have better healthcare, pay, and vacation time than we do. Go figure.
Germany is an economic powerhouse, and has strong unions. They have better healthcare, pay, and vacation time than we do. Go figure.
29
If you don't like what is going on with the job, quit. You don't own the company. You don't have the right tell them how to run their company. If you don't like it, start your own company and compete! This isn't the USSR!
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