Barcelona Apple Store union will strike on December 23

AppleInsider

Apple employees at an Apple Store in Barcelona are going on strike on December 23, with demands including holiday bonuses and better scheduling.

Passeig de Gracia Apple Store

Promoted on X on Tuesday by the CGT Apple union, the strike action will involve Apple workers spending time outside the Passeig de Gracia Apple Store on December 23. At this time, it seems the strike will be limited just to one store.

In an image posted to social media, and a post to the union's website, the strike will last for 24 hours throughout December 23, though the organizers advise workers that they don't need to be there the whole time, and can choose how long they stay there for.

The strike action, which was decided to proceed in an assembly on Thursday, calls for changes in working practices at the store in a number of areas.

First, the group demands Apple support bonuses for working on Sundays and holidays. It also wants Apple to accept volunteers to work during those periods.

The other demands revolve around scheduling, with one including introducing regular shifts with fixed in and out times, as well as meal times, on a weekly rotation.

There is also a long-term scheduling issue, the union feels, with it wanting monthly delivery of schedules that offer timings up to three months in advance.

The CGT Apple union strike occurs three months after employees in Apple Stores across France held their own industrial action at multiple stores. The action, which involved multiple retail unions, were triggered by Apple refusing a 7% pay rise request intended to offset inflation.

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bloggerblog

Then people get triggered when large companies adopt automations or move talent abroad like tech support. Apple refused the 7% pay rise because every other company paid 4%.

chasm

bloggerblog said:

Then people get triggered when large companies adopt automations or move talent abroad like tech support. Apple refused the 7% pay rise because every other company paid 4%.

Yes, the nerve of these people wanting their pay to match the rate of inflation! Outrageous!

Have you listened to yourself?

filemakerfeller

bloggerblog said:

Then people get triggered when large companies adopt automations or move talent abroad like tech support. Apple refused the 7% pay rise because every other company paid 4%.

What's interesting is that companies are motivated to improve their efficiency when wages are high. Naturally, nobody wants to be forced into doing work; thus the usual approach is to complain about the high cost of labour and try to suppress wage growth - which has the result of breeding resentment.

I wonder what would happen if companies framed the problem as "how can we afford to pay our employees more?"

iadlib

As an American and former apple retail employee. Some of these are laughable:

the group demands Apple support bonuses for working on Sundays and holidays.

What?? Is the country or city as a whole closed on Sundays? Barcelona is a tourist destination. So yeah, no. 

It also wants Apple to accept volunteers to work during those periods. 

Volunteers as in an employee volunteering for a holiday shift? Or volunteers in general? Imagine the Genius Bar:

 “yes sir. I just need to reset the flux capacitor on your iPhone with this hammer. Trust me, I’m a volunteer.”

The other demands revolve around scheduling, with one including introducing regular shifts with fixed in and out times, as well as meal times, on a weekly rotation. 

There is also a long-term scheduling issue, the union feels, with it wanting monthly delivery of schedules that offer timings up to three months in advance. 

It’s retail, not an office job. By nature it demands flexibility. You want to know your schedule 3 months in advance?? You’d be lucky to know it 2 weeks out.

Just ask for more $ in general and deal with retail. Or leave. But these demands show that you clearly don’t understand retail. 

avon b7

iadlib said:

As an American and former apple retail employee. Some of these are laughable:

the group demands Apple support bonuses for working on Sundays and holidays.

What?? Is the country or city as a whole closed on Sundays? Barcelona is a tourist destination. So yeah, no. 

It also wants Apple to accept volunteers to work during those periods. 

Volunteers as in an employee volunteering for a holiday shift? Or volunteers in general? Imagine the Genius Bar:

 “yes sir. I just need to reset the flux capacitor on your iPhone with this hammer. Trust me, I’m a volunteer.”

The other demands revolve around scheduling, with one including introducing regular shifts with fixed in and out times, as well as meal times, on a weekly rotation. 

There is also a long-term scheduling issue, the union feels, with it wanting monthly delivery of schedules that offer timings up to three months in advance. 

It’s retail, not an office job. By nature it demands flexibility. You want to know your schedule 3 months in advance?? You’d be lucky to know it 2 weeks out.

Just ask for more $ in general and deal with retail. Or leave. But these demands show that you clearly don’t understand retail. 

"As an American". 

You may well find that some EU retail workers actually manage to get these things into labour conventions.

iadlib

avon b7 said:

"As an American". 

You may well find that some EU retail workers actually manage to get these things into labour conventions.

Apple is an AMERICAN company that is accountable to its shareholders to continue making billions in glorious capitalist revenue, and you might find, shockingly, that those roots aren't as flexible or pro-worker as you'd like and that you might be in a situation where you're either going to deal with it or find another job. Some retail employees in a tourist trap city like Barca are not going to change it by themselves.

avon b7

iadlib said:

avon b7 said:

"As an American". 

You may well find that some EU retail workers actually manage to get these things into labour conventions.

Apple is an AMERICAN company that is accountable to its shareholders to continue making billions in glorious capitalist revenue, and you might find, shockingly, that those roots aren't as flexible or pro-worker as you'd like and that you might be in a situation where you're either going to deal with it or find another job. Some retail employees in a tourist trap city like Barca are not going to change it by themselves.

Being an AMERICAN company has nothing to do with anything. 

Nor do shareholder interests. 

You are going to see pretty big differences in some aspects of labour agreements between Apple employees in the US and in the EU. 

Yes, there are too many tourists in certain parts of Barcelona but then again tourism is a major industry in Barcelona (and all of Spain). 

Nit-picking, I'll admit but:

barca = boat
Barça = FC Barcelona (the sports teams) 
Barna = Barcelona (capital, not metropolitan) 
BCN = travel destination reference for Barcelona 

To be honest, I've even seen 'barca' in the broadsheet press so it's a common mistake. Not unlike many American English speakers who have taken to saying 'cajones' when they mean 'cojones' which always gives me a smile. 

edited January 2024