Apple Store in Glasgow Makes History as First UK Store to Unionize

Apple's retail store in Glasgow, Scotland, has become the first UK store to officially vote in favor of forming a union.

apple glasgow
Staff at the Glasgow store had been eyeing unionization for some time and comes amid continued concerns for some employees over pay and working conditions. Staff at the Glasgow store are now set to use their unionization to push for higher hourly pay.

In response to the vote, Apple told The Herald it is "one of the highest paying retailers in Scotland" and it "regularly made enhancements to our industry-leading benefits as a part of the overall support we provide to our valued team members."

Apple has been attempting to ease concerns from retail staff over the last several months, encouraging store managers to be more open and direct with staff over their concerns and promising action to address them.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Top Rated Comments

BootsWalking Avatar
19 months ago

How much is enough? Should a sales grunt make a million a year?
A million? Nah. Enough to actually feed and house yourself? Yes.
Score: 43 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Marbles1 Avatar
19 months ago
Glad to hear. Always good for lower paid workers doing mass market jobs like retail to keep their employers on their toes.

Apple make insane profits. They can afford to pay their staff more.
Score: 41 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dannyyankou Avatar
19 months ago

In response to the vote, Apple told The Herald ('https://www.heraldscotland.com/business_hq/23094915.scottish-apple-store-staff-become-first-uk-unionise/') it is "one of the highest paying retailers in Scotland" and it "regularly made enhancements to our industry-leading benefits as a part of the overall support we provide to our valued team members."
Wrong answer Apple. The right thing to say at this moment is "we respect their decision and we will begin negotiations for a labor contract."
Score: 36 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Freida Avatar
19 months ago
Have you ever worked in retail especially in UK? You live from paycheck to paycheck and you pray that you don't have any emergency expenses (like broken something).
You also usually have to do flat share as UK is very expensive so until people have living wage then there is always need to have higher salaries especially when the company is so rich. These people work hard and should have reasonable balance.


How much is enough? Should a sales grunt make a million a year?
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mr. Dee Avatar
19 months ago
Apple has to stop hiding behind these hollow ethos about making the world a better place. Its just a veneer on a culture that I suspect internally is very toxic. The cracks show when you have that procurement executive who made that silly comment and got canned. If it wasn't caught on video, you think Apple would have fired him? Apple at the end of the day is a big old stinking business and its in service to its shareholders, first and foremost. Don't forget that. Its just that they happen to make really great products.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ILoveCalvinCool Avatar
19 months ago
Great news. Hope it spreads company-wide.
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 15 Pro FineWoven

Apple Reportedly Stops Production of FineWoven Accessories

Sunday April 21, 2024 6:03 am PDT by
Apple has stopped production of FineWoven accessories, according to the Apple leaker and prototype collector known as "Kosutami." In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Kosutami explained that Apple has stopped production of FineWoven accessories due to its poor durability. The company may move to another non-leather material for its premium accessories in the future. Kosutami has revealed...
Provenance Emulator

PlayStation and SEGA Emulator for iPhone and Apple TV Coming to App Store [Updated]

Friday April 19, 2024 8:29 am PDT by
The lead developer of the multi-emulator app Provenance has told iMore that his team is working towards releasing the app on the App Store, but he did not provide a timeframe. Provenance is a frontend for many existing emulators, and it would allow iPhone and Apple TV users to emulate games released for a wide variety of classic game consoles, including the original PlayStation, GameCube, Wii,...
iOS 17 All New Features Thumb

iOS 17.5 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Sunday April 21, 2024 3:00 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 17.5 update for the iPhone includes only a few new user-facing features, but hidden code changes reveal some additional possibilities. Below, we have recapped everything new in the iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5 beta so far. Web Distribution Starting with the second beta of iOS 17.5, eligible developers are able to distribute their iOS apps to iPhone users located in the EU...
apple vision pro orange

Apple Vision Pro Customer Interest Dying Down at Some Retail Stores

Monday April 22, 2024 2:12 am PDT by
Apple Vision Pro, Apple's $3,500 spatial computing device, appears to be following a pattern familiar to the AR/VR headset industry – initial enthusiasm giving way to a significant dip in sustained interest and usage. Since its debut in the U.S. in February 2024, excitement for the Apple Vision Pro has noticeably cooled, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Writing in his latest Power On...
top stories 20apr2024

Top Stories: Nintendo Emulators on App Store, Two New iOS 17 Features, and More

Saturday April 20, 2024 6:00 am PDT by
It was a big week for retro gaming fans, as iPhone users are starting to reap the rewards of Apple's recent change to allow retro game emulators on the App Store. This week also saw a new iOS 17.5 beta that will support web-based app distribution in the EU, the debut of the first hotels to allow for direct AirPlay streaming to room TVs, a fresh rumor about the impending iPad Air update, and...