Apple Violated U.S. Labor Laws With Anti-Leak Email

[Scoob Redux]

First of all, this “anti-worker” corporation (as all Top-tech Silicon Valley) pays elite wages you cannot see anywhere else in the world to these people, plus benefits, etc.
Then, I don’t defend corporations or workers based on which one is more powerful, but based on what is fair. If you’ve voluntarily signed an NDA in order to work at Apple and you break it, it’s your fault.

There are certainly things covered by an NDA that are enforceable. I did not imply that Apple cannot restrict workers' disclosure of proprietary or confidential information covered by NDA. The NLRB caught Apple trying to restrict workers' free and fair speech regarding working conditions, which fall under federal protections. Companies cannot effectively gag workers from talking about working conditions publicly.

Regarding Apple's treatment of workers in the areas of pay and benefits: when the CEO made $99.4M in 2022, and has a net worth of $1.7B, there is something wrong (Apple, of course, is not alone - they are an example of the problem). You may think that the workers get "elite" wages, but that's not really accurate. Apple is harvesting their labor and paying them a tiny fraction of what they produce for the company. That is, after all, how capitalism is designed to work - it concentrates wealth in the hands of the owners.

 

[OnawaAfrica]

How the hell is it violating labour laws if u aim a email at workers who leak Company internal Confidential Information's and break their NDAs?
The Company has every right to Warn and Terminate a Employees contract in such case

 

[AndyMacAndMic]

How the hell is it violating labour laws if u aim a email at workers who leak Company internal Confidential Information's and break their NDAs?
The Company has every right to Warn and Terminate a Employees contract in such case

Did you read the original post and this thread? If you did, you missed something.

 

[OnawaAfrica]

Did you read the original post and this thread? If you did, you missed something.

yes i read it and what did i miss? kindly point me in the right direction

 

[Vlad Soare]

yes i read it and what did i miss? kindly point me in the right direction

As I understand, this isn't about leaking confidential information per se, but about the fact that labour conditions may not be treated by the company as confidential information. In other words, they may forbid you to talk about their intellectual property, but they may not forbid you to talk about your working conditions.

 

[Victor Mortimer]

reference

Kinda vague, but I would think pay equality would be HR confidential. Generally people in tech companies don't discuss what everyone makes. In the retail side of it, it might be mentioned more.

In the US, it's illegal for companies to attempt to stop employees from discussing pay. Any NDA or employment contract that attempts to keep employees from discussing pay is contrary to public policy, illegal, and unenforceable.

 

[justperry]

Beaker is not happy

Erm...more like

 

[jamcgahey]

No, you can't "set that aside".



They can do that.



They do. This is specifically about labor-related leaks.

Yes, you can set it aside when asking a general question that wasn't specific to Apple or any particular instance. I wasn't setting it aside to like not think about it.

 

[jamcgahey]

The article specifically says that the issue is with Apple trying to consider meetings about labor practices and general HR policy as confidential, specifically as it relates to pay equity, work-from-home, and COVID-19 policies. No one is disputing that companies have the right to protect their intellectual property.

I was asking a general question. It wasn't meant specifically about whether apple had the right to shutdown employees discussing HR related stuff.

 

[makitango]

I always find it funny when people suggest that if you sign an NDA, that it is the only legal basis that exists in the world.
Might just as much include in that NDA agreement to stay silent if child labor is applied.
People need to understand that Apple operates in real physical countries outside of their iCloud and while being there, it has to follow laws as well.

 

[pankajdoharey]

The minimum wage is literally set by the government. However minimum wage is also a terrible idea since you're inflating the value of low skilled workers and harming the ones who can't get jobs. In some states like California you can't even offer internships to low-skilled people, further limiting their growth opportunities.

We need less government intrusion in our lives.

The other side is when low skill in expensive high skill will be more expensive, and people have an incentive to use their brain and move into a knowledge based economy, get highly skilled.