The U.S. National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has charged Apple with infringing on workers’ rights to advocate for improved workplace conditions by limiting their use of social media and the messaging app Slack, the agency reported on Friday.
The complaint, issued on Thursday, outlines several allegations against the tech giant, including imposing strict rules on the use of Slack, wrongfully terminating an employee who advocated for workplace reforms on Slack, forcing another employee to remove a social media post, and creating an atmosphere where employees felt they were under surveillance on social media platforms.
This marks the second complaint the NLRB has filed against Apple this month. Previously, the agency accused Apple of compelling employees nationwide to agree to illegal confidentiality, nondisclosure, and noncompete clauses and of enforcing excessive broad misconduct and social media policies.
On Friday, an Apple spokesperson stated that the company is committed to maintaining “a positive and inclusive workplace” and seriously addresses employee grievances. “We strongly disagree with these claims and will continue to present the facts at the hearing,” the spokesperson added.
In response to an earlier complaint, Apple denied wrongdoing and emphasized its commitment to respecting employees’ rights to discuss wages, hours, and working conditions.
If Apple and the NLRB do not settle, an administrative judge will preside over an initial hearing in February. The NLRB’s five-member board can review the outcomes of this hearing, and parties may appeal the decisions in federal court.
The current case stems from a complaint Janneke Parrish filed nearly three years ago, alleging that Apple fired her in 2021 for her role in leading employee activism efforts. According to the complaint, Parrish used Slack and public social media to advocate for permanent remote work options, circulate a pay equity survey, reveal alleged sexual and racial discrimination at Apple, and write open letters criticizing the company.
Apple introduced Slack several years ago, and it became a popular discussion platform during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the NLRB complaint points out that Apple requires managerial approval to create new Slack channels and insists that employees direct posts about workplace issues to a manager or the “People Support” group.
On Friday, Parrish’s attorney, Laurie Burgess, expressed that Apple had violated workers’ rights ” extensively. “We look forward to holding Apple accountable at trial for implementing facially unlawful rules and terminating employees for engaging in the core protected activity of calling out gender discrimination and other civil rights violations that permeated the workplace,” Burgess stated.
The complaint seeks a court order for Apple to rescind its allegedly illegal policies and to compensate Parrish for lost wages and other financial consequences of her termination.
