As noted by AppleInsider, the White City, London Apple Store location is signing up with the United Tech & Allied Workers Union (UTAW) to seek improved employee benefits, better training, and more pay. According to the UTAW website, this is what is sought for Apple retail employees:
° A pay increase to match the rising costs of living. Equal pay for equal work. Premium pay during anti-social hours.
° Better shift patterns with longer hours off between shifts, more predictable rotations, better flexibility and shift preferences, and a healthier work-life balance.
° Reduce the metric-driven management and task time tracking that’s increasingly leading to stress, burnout, overwork. This includes individualised sales metrics, run, repair and appointment duration countdown clocks, and individual customer survey responses.
° Work from home options for any role or tasks that can be done remotely, including retail roles such as our business teams and planner roles.
° More options for leave, including improved bereavement leave, menstrual leave and gender affirmation leave.
° Improve disciplinary processes to make investigations after sickness less threatening and invasive and reduce duration or severity of sanctions.
° Replace the third-party app we use to manage our shifts with something fit for purpose.
° Provide us with higher quality training, including practical activities and relying less on web-based quizzes.
° Pay the Genius Admin role in line with Geniuses. GAs are overworked and underappreciated in every store and are criminally under-compensated. Increase hiring for this role.
° Employees in long-term acting positions and on “career experiences” should be paid in line with the duties that they’re performing.
° Many of us work in shopping centres with expensive parking. Subsidise our parking and transport costs.
° Consult staff directly on health and safety policies, including COVID and mask protocols.
Apple Stores around the world have begun unionizing efforts. They include stores in the U.S., Australia and now the United Kingdom.
Article provided with permission from AppleWorld.Today