Apple U.S. retail store employees now get a minimum of 12 hours between shifts, up from 10 hours. And they won’t have to work more than five days in a row. These are just two of the changes Apple is reportedly making to how it schedules workers at its 270+ retail locations.
It’s likely these are intended to reduce employee interest in joining unions.
Scheduling improvements for Apple store employees
Workers at some Apple stores were notified Thursday of multiple changes to scheduling policies, according to Bloomberg.
Under the new rules, employees who ask to not work late shifts won’t be scheduled to work past 8 pm more than three days a week. And full-time workers can take a weekend day off every six months.
Not all of the Apple store policy changes take effect immediately. Some will start in a few weeks, but others won’t be in place for months.
It’s all about the union
While no Apple employee is in a union, just the threat of unionizing caused management to become a lot more flexible. Cupertino raised pay for retailer workers. And they got more time off.
But these aren’t the only ways the company is trying stop unions. An effort to unionize an Apple store in Atlanta was dropped amidst accusations of management intimation.