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Apple Facing Class Action Lawsuit From 20,000 Employees Over Alleged Labor Code Violations

Tuesday July 22, 2014 5:00 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Apple is facing a class action lawsuit in California over a number of alleged Labor Code violations, with the company being accused of not providing timely meal breaks, timely rest breaks, and timely final paychecks, reports TechCrunch.
Plaintiffs bring this Class Action against Defendants to recover for, among other things, failure to provide meal and rest periods, failure to furnish accurate itemized wage statements, and failure to pay timely wages on the end of employment, interest, attorneys' fees, penalties, costs, and expenses on behalf of themselves, the Plaintiff Class, and the Plaintiff Subclasses.
Originally filed in December of 2011 by four former Apple retail and corporate employees in San Diego, the lawsuit was certified as class action yesterday and could affect up to 20,000 current and former Apple employees in the state of California.

apple_retail_employees
According to the filing, which demands a jury trial, employee complaints cover a wide range of possible labor code violations. One complaint, for example, cites employees having to work for five hours straight without a meal break, while another complaint suggests that Apple took several weeks to send out a final check to multiple employees.

The lawsuit asks for compensatory damages and restitution of all monies due to affected employees from unlawful business practices, along with interest, but it does not specify a damages amount.

Along with this new class action lawsuit, Apple is embroiled in a class action lawsuit with Apple retail employees who allege that Apple's bag checking policies have resulted in lost wages, a suit that also accuses Apple of violating state labor laws.



[ 226 comments ]


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horsebattery
66 months ago

Winey FN b****es. Be thankful you don't live in an impoverished nation or war torn country.


Try working in china.


Lost wages? You mean like how my Apple store manager sister have caught and fired employees stealing stuff in their bags?


Five whole hours without a break? Poor babies. Those of us who routinely go 8+ without one really feel for them....


5 hours without a meal break :eek: that would be 7am-noon?! :rolleyes:


Ungrateful. Apple at least gave them a job, in this economy.


Wow, no meal for 5 hours?? What's the world coming to??

Such an overly litigious society made up of ungrateful cry babies.


The amount of comments here disregarding the employees' claims here is staggering. Putting aside that labor laws exist for a reason, it's laughable that these allegations are simply put down so easily. Did [those that commented that way] even bother to read through the story? Or is this one of those cases where the blame would be piled on other companies other than Apple? :rolleyes:

Edit: Added the quotes. Holy crap they just keep coming.
Rating: 43 Votes
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Joelist
66 months ago
Five whole hours without a break? Poor babies. Those of us who routinely go 8+ without one really feel for them....
Rating: 35 Votes
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RedOrchestra
66 months ago
WOW ... the Apple "can do no wrong" fanboys are now into dissing the retail employees - doesn't get much lower than that.
Rating: 35 Votes
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Atlantico
66 months ago
I find it highly disturbing that people think their personal experience or opinion on the law changes the merit of the law.

So your rights were abused and you didn't complain. Whoopdeedoo for you.

Smart people demand their rights. The rest are just losers. :p
Rating: 32 Votes
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unobtainium
66 months ago

These claims sound ridiculous. I don't sympathize with Apple employees at all. I have worked at Target for a couple of years and let me tell you I prefer to have not taken my meal break if they just leave me alone and not yell at me for making sure my department was properly zoned at the end of the night. 5 hrs and no break? Sorry Apple sweeties but just about every restaurant I've worked at has forced their servers, bus boys, and cooks to work without a break until the very end of their shift. That's life. You should be privileged to be standing behind a desk and looked up to for advice by customers and only have to deal with one at a time. Try working for Target where during the holidays you have to pick up the phone, try to cash out customers, and not have their kids opening boxes or steal. Ugh, Apple employees and their first world probs.


I really despise people who want everyone else to be as miserable as them. The fact that your job sucks really has no bearing on whether or not Apple needs to follow labor laws. Your company needs to follow labor laws too. Why should Apple get a pass if they're breaking some laws? Because you're miserable at your job?
Rating: 23 Votes
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iCore24
66 months ago
You would think a company with 170 billion dollars in the bank and makes a butt load of money every quarter would pay and treat there employees very generous$$$
Rating: 21 Votes
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leman
66 months ago
If some of you have ****** jobs, where you are abused, have to work with ungrateful supervisors in difficult social conditions and are ok with that, that is your problem and your choice.

I applaud those employees that have the courage to fight for their rights and wish them all the success in the lawsuit.
Rating: 17 Votes
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Retired Cat
66 months ago

And yet they have apparently violated some parts of the Labor Code.

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The employees didn't come up with the Labor Code...



This.

I am puzzled as to why many people today do not see compliance with the law as the proper thing.

Yes, I realize I sound like the cranky old man yelling "get off my lawn".
Rating: 16 Votes
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AFDoc
66 months ago

Seriously as a doctor, 5 hours is playtime. I do get pretty cranky after 18 though...

Right! I've been in surgery for more than 5 hours at a time..... Of course those 20+ shifts are always a good time huh.

Meh... I don't see anything an ice cream cone can't fix. Boo hoo, little spoiled kids and their labor laws.

Yeah no need for those... Heck let's make it so 9 year old kids can get back on the assembly line making $0.10 an hour pulling 15 hour days.... Yeah boo hoo little spoiled kids. FFS are you serious? Guess you don't have a clue about the labor history here in the good ol US of A.

The amount of comments here disregarding the employees' claims here is staggering. Putting aside that labor laws exist for a reason, it's laughable that these allegations are simply put down so easily. Did [those that commented that way] even bother to read through the story? Or is this one of those cases where the blame would be piled on other companies other than Apple? :rolleyes:

Edit: Added the quotes. Holy crap they just keep coming.

No need trying to get through to those people.... most probably haven't had to actually "work" a day in their lives... I don't mean they don't have a job but those that have had to "work" for a living know what I mean.

Exactly, no pity for people that can't respect themselves enough to fight for what is owed to them.

I know right.... flex your rights or lose them. Most would rather stand around and let things happen to them instead of making things happen for them.

Oh no, 5 hours straight without a meal break.
I work 12 hours without any break. :rolleyes:

If you work for a company that is legit you are being screwed and they are breaking the law. In a 12 hour shift you are legally allowed 2 15 min paid breaks and one 1/2 hour non paid lunch break. Law is the law is the law.... IF you're not taking them they can be punished...IF they are not giving you the breaks they can be punished. Either way the company (if you work for one) is breaking the law. If you work for yourself then do what you will... but if that's the case you're making a different argument.

Sadly, this is what you get for staffing your workforce with a bunch of lazy, directionless millennials.

As apposed to an awesome person like yourself? Laws are there for a reason..... even your daddy apple needs to follow them.

Poor little twenty year olds can't sit or stand in an air conditioned store and talk for 5 hours straight?? The horror !! Count me in the group that thinks America's youth is a bunch of weenies

Are you a labor law lawyer? Doesn't sound like it but I thought I'd ask just in case.
Rating: 16 Votes
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AFDoc
66 months ago

Ungrateful. Apple at least gave them a job, in this economy.


SO because they gave people jobs they should be able to break the law?
Rating: 16 Votes

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