Mikey Campbell
The U.S. National Labor Relations Board, an independent government agency tasked with defending labor law, is examining two complaints filed by Apple employees.
Two cases were filed with the NLRB's Oakland office on Aug. 26 and Sept. 1, Reuters reports.
According to publicly available records, the filings in question pertain to apparent workplace harassment issues and potentially hostile working conditions. The complaint in August cites claims of concerted activities, which are defined by the NLRB as retaliation, discharge, discipline or similar offenses, at Apple's Sunnyvale offices. A second filing alleges coercive statements, defined as threats, promises of benefits and other nefarious interactions.
Partially redacted records seen by AppleInsider outline the basis of charges in the Sunnyvale instance, with the complainant alleging Apple management withheld work, fostered and insisted on a return to a hostile work environment, reassigned job duties and forced the person to take paid administrative leave. A retaliatory employee relations investigation and an incident in which ER revealed the petitioner's identity to an alleged sexual harasser are also listed among the objections.
Claims detailed in the complaint closely match allegations aired by Apple employee Ashley Gjovik on Twitter over the past few weeks, though her association with the filing could not be confirmed. On her website, the senior engineering program manager says she filed a complaint with the NLRB, as well as other government regulatory agencies. Gjovik was placed on administrative leave in early August.
Apple and Gjovik did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Apple is facing mounting criticism from within its own ranks. Against a backdrop of claims that the tech giant brushes workplace issues under the rug, current and past employees launched the #AppleToo movement in an effort to surface allegations of harassment, sexism, racism, inequity and more. Last week it was reported that the organization received nearly 500 stories detailing workplace discrimination and harassment, reports that are now being published online.
Update: Gjovik later confirmed her involvement in the complaint in a statement to Reuters.
"We take all concerns seriously and we thoroughly investigate whenever a concern is raised and, out of respect for the privacy of any individuals involved, we do not discuss specific employee matters," Apple said in a statement to the publication.
William Gallagher
Christine McKee
AppleInsider Staff
Chip Loder
Malcolm Owen
9 Comments
Somebody thought they were bigger than they were, got talked to, and then tried to turn the tables… because entitlement.
Ashley likes to talk a lot, but has shown no evidence as of yet.
Seems like WHEREVER Ashley roams, she tends to discover adverse personal issues galore. Check out this long article she wrote. (She’s in law school now. Watch out below.)
There are two sides to every story and it’s likely we won’t ever hear the other side of this one.
My SIL always has trouble with co-workers. My SO pointed out to me long ago that her sister sort of flip-flopped between being unhappy with people at work, but happy with her current boyfriend, then being unhappy with her boyfriend but getting along with people at work. It was a pattern that went on for years. (Now she’s a spinster and hasn’t dated in several years)
One time she was telling my SO about an incident that happened at work. She was at BB&B at the time and was working on a display with a male coworker. According to her he had made an inappropriate comment and then struck her. She complained and disciplinary action was taken against her co-worker.
As my SO asked questions about the incident it turned out she had asked a question that he felt she should know the answer to (and it turned out she did). He jokingly said, “You’re so silly!” (that was the inappropriate comment) and then bumped her in the head with a pillow (the was the striking). She then mentioned he no longer spoke to her (can you imagine?!) and she was surprised as she had considered him a friend. Friendly enough to her that one snowy morning she couldn’t get her car out of wherever it was parked and he drove over to her place and shoveled her out.
If that’s how she treats people she considers friends I hate to think how she treats people she doesn’t care for. Sadly, that is one example of many with my SIL.
If there truly is workplace harassment, or other claims as mentioned in this article, it should certainly be investigated and addressed if appropriate. Unfortunately, some of those claims will come from people like my SIL who seems to blow everything way out of proportion.