Apple Geniuses File Class Action Suit over Breaks

Nicole Martinelli ()

Apple Geniuses File Class Action Suit over Breaks

CC-licsensed. Via Andy Macht on Flickr.

Former Apple retail employees have filed a class action suit in California over rest breaks and poor treatment.

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of all people employed in non-exempt (hourly paid) “Genius” positions in San Francisco County Superior Court on September 15, 2009. A website gives more details on the suit.

“Apple has enjoyed an advantage over its competition and imposes a resultant disadvantage on its “Genius” employees by failing to authorize, permit and provide statutorily mandated rest breaks as required by law.”

“In addition, although Defendants are aware that Geniuses are not being permitted to take breaks, they have failed and refused to compensate Geniuses for missed rest breaks.”

The suit aims to recover unpaid wages, penalties, an injunction and other equitable relief and fees and costs for the period of September 15, 2005 to present.

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If you are a Genius and want to talk in anonymity about the break issue at Apple retail stores, contact us.

Via 9to5 Mac

19 comments »

About the author

nicole_martinelli

Nicole Martinelli is a San Francisco native who has lived in Milan and Florence, Italy. She's written for Wired.com, The New York Times and Newsweek. You can find her on Twitter , Facebook and Google+.

If you're doing something new/cool that's Apple related, email her about it.

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Posted in Apple, News, Retail Stores |

  • http://deoclicianocgiportfolio.wordpress.com Deocliciano Okssipin Vieira

    Bad Apple, Bad!
    I wonder if engineers are treated the same.

  • cmanic

    @DDeocliciano Okssipin Vieira….Engineers would be salary and the result Apple can work’em has hard as they want…

  • Bobby

    With the amount of people unemployed in the U.S. I find this type of lawsuit frivolous. To be honest, I find this frivolous regardless of the unemployment rate. You’re an hourly employee, if you want anything more than a restroom break clock out.

  • http://www.fort90.com/journal/ fort90

    Yeah, that’s the attitude Bobby.

    Christ…

  • Rob

    So even on the top floor of the Genius foundries… there’s strain for the gain…

  • AppleConsumer

    I hate the “geniuses.” Many are arrogant, rude, know-nothings.

  • Bobby

    @ fort 90:

    I’ve been an hourly employee before. If you’re not working you’re costing the company money and making yourself a less valuable employee. When it comes time to downsize, the employee who takes the most breaks, is the dumbest or the newest goes first. I personally would get rid of the dumbest first, regardless of time employed, but the laziest (the guy that takes the most breaks) would go next, regardless of how smart he/she is.

  • David

    In Florida an employer is not required to give you breaks, not even for lunch. The only requirement is that they have to pay you and after 40 hrs give you time and half.

    There was talk in the past about OSHA requiring employers to give bathroom breaks.

    Also ADA states that reasonable accomodations must be made for peoples handicaps. Not sure if a break is a reasonable accomodation.

  • Hairy Donut

    Well I don’t know what they are doing in California, but I am not complaining down here in Miami nor was I in NYC

  • http://pixelsatanexhibition.com Knox Bronson

    I’ve always had good “geniuses” at the Apple store. In fact, in all the years I’ve been spending money there, using the genius bar, doing one-on-ones, I’ve only had to deal with one arrogant prick. And I let the manager know. Every one else has been great – and I am talking about a lot of people in a lot of different stores.
    That said, breaks are required by state law. I once worked at the phone company and not taking breaks was a big deal, and not in a good way. I’m surprised Apple would lay themselves open for such an easily proved claim.

  • john appleseed

    I currently work in one of the market’s lead stores, and i can attest to most of the genious being overworked. I can also attest to the fact that MOST are arrogant, cold & consumed with their work & title…

    I’m just a humble specialist.

  • ChampagneBob

    I have never had an arrogant genius…. never…. and I’m at a store at least once of month with the various problems with our company’s mid-size system.

    If you know what is right/fair/reasonable the genius will go out of his/her way to make things work out….. I’ve seen many horses ass’s walk in and jump down a genius throat…. they get what they deserve.

    To paint them with a brush is wrong and FUD in my opinion.

  • charli

    having recently worked retail (and as a manager) in Cali I know that the law is that the boss has to give you the opportunity to take a break but outside of your lunch is not required to make sure you do it. If you choose to work through it that’s on you.

    I suspect that in at least some cases, the opportunity was there (written into their schedule) but the genius didn’t take advantage of it. Maybe not every case, but at least some. I’ve been in the Apple store by my office and seen them doing way more than 15 minutes of repairs for some folks, falling behind etc, so I can believe that they would work right through a scheduled break time.

  • RobbieP

    To a person the geniuses and one to one staff have been all aces to me and all around me. Overworked. Don’t know about their breaks???

  • Dchu

    I’d be surprised if they never got sued. Every large corporation that relies on hourly workers gets sued eventually over breaks. In the end, it’s all about the lawyers. After all the fees they charge on the settlement, how much is left over for the workers? My guess is a whole $40 max.

  • king

    why would any company making low profits act nice and friendly and once its reach a high level of revenue , they turn evil?

  • Gil

    Wait a second, the employees are upset that they are deprived of breaks, as in rest periods? So why are they suing for more money?

    …”The suit aims to recover unpaid wages, penalties, an injunction and other equitable relief and fees and costs for the period of September 15, 2005 to present.”…

    If they are working through breaks how are they losing money? I don’t understand.

  • porkchop1234

    @Gil

    The answer is quite simple. If for example in the coarse of your shift you’re entitled to a 15 minute coffee break and you are forced to work through it for whatever reason then your employer is obliged to either give you that paid coffee break at a later time during your shift or tack on an extra 15 minutes of pay to the end of your shift hours for that day. If they don’t do either then they just stole from you.

    I don’t know about California but here in most of Canada that’s a LABOR LAW that can get a employer in hot water if they refuse to pay their employees. Not only can they be taken to the labor board by their own employees but if found guilty they can also face huge fines and in some cases be added to the provincial governments black list of bad employers. Get on that list and a company can have a real miserable time trying to get off of it.

    @Bobby

    You should get a job at Foxxconn. You would fit right in with the rest of their slave drivers. Greedy arrogant idiot.

  • Lynne whiteside

    faster, harder, more, more, more. this is a small example of management pushing employees for the sake of the $. sounds like the beginning of an oil spill…