Employees at Apple’s Penn Square store in Oklahoma City have voted to unionize with the Communications Workers of America, voting 56 yes and 32 no. According to the National Labor Relations Board, which oversaw the election, all regular full-time and part-time workers in the store were eligible to vote, 95 in all.
The election was only the second for an American Apple Store. In June, workers in Maryland voted to unionize with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers. Another election was scheduled to take place in Atlanta, but the CWA canceled it, claiming the company had made a fair election “impossible” by intimidating employees.
Apple has received several complaints about anti-union tactics, including in Oklahoma – earlier this month, the CWA filed charges against the company with the NLRB. According to the union, Apple has interviewed and patrolled employees at the Penn Square store, and held captive public rallies (even during the busy launch day of the iPhone 14 Plus, according to the union). a report of Public Radio Tulsa), and said they wouldn’t get the same benefits as non-union stores if they voted to organize. The last point is supported by a report of Bloomberg that said Apple told workers at the union store in Maryland to negotiate benefits given to employees at the other stores.