National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) officials said Monday that a complaint from Apple alleging violations of workers’ rights laws is well founded, according to Bloomberg.
The NLRB oversees labor disputes and complaints in the US complaint unfair labor practices is submitted, it is examined by area attorneys and examiners. If they find “probable merit,” the company can resolve the matter or receive a formal complaint from an NLRB regional director.
Now that NLRB officials have found merit, Apple will receive a complaint, an NLRB spokesperson told Bloomberg.
It’s not the company’s first battle with the board in recent times: The NLRB found merit in complaints related to the company’s anti-union efforts in Atlanta in December, per quartz.
This particular case comes from Ashley Gjøvik and another former employee and their right to speak out publicly about workplace issues.
Gjøvik joined Apple in 2015 in software engineering, according to its website. She is now outspoken about issues she had with the company and has filed complaints with the NLRB and other government agencies.
As part of this complaint, she gave the NLRB company files, according to TechCrunch. These include an email from CEO Tim Cook who issued a harsh warning about speaking to the media after a reporter tweeted a detailed summary of an Apple encounter.
“I want to reassure you that we are making every effort to identify those who leaked. As you know, we do not tolerate disclosures of confidential information, whether it be product IP or the details of a confidential meeting,” Cook wrote. in the memo, according to the outlet.
“We know that the leakers are a small number of people. We also know that people who leak confidential information don’t belong here,” Cook wrote.
Employees have one protected right to share benefits information on social media, but the rules are somewhat darker when it comes to their right to speak to journalists.
Another former employee, Cher Scarlett, said the company had rules that “prohibit employees from discussing wages, hours or other terms of employment,” which were also included in this investigation, according to Bloomberg.
Apple’s policies around these issues “tend to interfere, restrict, or coerce employees from exercising their right to protected coordinated activities,” the NLRB spokesperson said, per TechCrunch.
According to TechCrunch, the NLRB has not ruled on Gjøvik’s complaint that she was illegally fired in retaliation for speaking out about the company.
Gjøvik discussed her feelings about the decision Monday, according to Bloomberg.
“I hope Apple is told for the first time by the government that this culture of secrecy is not okay… I also hope that this sends shockwaves through other companies that even Apple can be held accountable,” she said.
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