US retail workers at the Oklahoma City Apple store in Penn Square Mall have successfully ratified their first collectively bargained contract.
The union workers are part of Communications Workers of America (CWA), operating as Apple Retail Union-CWA Local 6016.
The ratified three-year contract promises up to an 11.5% wage increase up to 2027, alongside provisions for worker involvement in scheduling and guaranteed paid time off for voting.
The agreement also ensures a safer and more democratic workplace by introducing a grievance and arbitration process and the creation of joint Safety and Health and Working Relations committees.
Further details of the contract include job protection in the event of store closures or relocations, severance pay, guaranteed paid time off, and health and other benefits.
Apple Retail Union-CWA genius admin and member Michael Forsythe said: "It is exhilarating to finalise this bargaining process and know that after all the work we have done and all the obstacles that Apple has put in our way, we have finally secured the protection and improvements in pay and benefits that we deserve.”
The decision to ratify the contract follows a unanimous vote by workers in August 2024 to authorise a strike and an informational picket due to delays at the bargaining table.
Negotiations yielded a tentative agreement on 6 September.
The 78 retail workers at the Penn Square Apple Store are the second group of Apple’s retail workers to win a collectively bargained contract and the first to do so with the support of Communications Workers of America.
In August 2024, workers at the Towson Town Square store in Maryland, represented by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, ratified the first collective contract with Apple.
CWA District 6 vice-president Derrick Osobase said: "With the Oklahoma City workers’ success and the growing public support for unions across the country, it’s time for Apple to change course, hold itself accountable to their credo, and allow workers at all stores a free and fair opportunity to choose whether or not to join a union.”
An Apple spokesperson told Retail Insight Network: “At Apple, we work hard to provide an excellent experience for our team members and our customers. We have always paid our retail teams in the top tier of the market and we provide exceptional benefits for all full- and part-time employees. Throughout this process, we have bargained in good faith and this agreement allows Penn Square team members to enjoy similar performance-based wage increases this year as last year, along with the same medical and time away benefits our US retail employees currently receive.”
With regard to payment increases, the spokesperson also said that, a tentative agreement offers an average pay increase of 10% over three years. If contract is ratified, the increases will be structured as follows: 4% in year one (2024), followed by 3% in both 2025 and 2026, with adjustments based on employee performance, similar to the Towson model.
The spokesperson noted that PSQ team members will follow the same availability guidelines as the rest of the fleet, with no exceptions. They will also have access to the scheduling options made available to all other US stores in 2022. Additionally, PSQ team members are entitled to the same medical benefits and time-off policies, including vacation, sick leave, and holidays, that all US employees enjoy.
The agreement establishes a safety committee at PSQ, mirroring the structure in all Apple stores. A working relations committee, consisting of two representatives each from the employer and the union, will convene twice annually to foster positive labour-management interactions. PSQ team members will adhere to the same documented coaching, disciplinary measures, and misconduct policies as those applied in the rest of the US stores. The only distinction is that PSQ employees will follow a points-based attendance policy, similar to the one in Towson, the spokesperson added.
