At Apple, according to their own account, pay equity already prevails, but employees are increasingly expressing doubts – and demanding more transparency. To compare salaries among colleagues, employees have conducted at least two internal surveys in the past few months, each of which was withdrawn after Apple’s human resources department intervened, such as The Verge reported.
Apple’s “People Team” referred to data protection concerns because data such as gender and ethnicity were also collected in the context of the salary survey in order to be able to identify differences. Another survey without asking about gender was apparently prevented with the reference that it was created with a company cloud account.
Prohibition on collecting demographic data
Surveys that collect demographic data are generally prohibited, according to an internally distributed memo from the iPhone Group’s human resources department, the The Verge published. One of the organizers told the site that the surveys and all information are voluntary.
The strict procedure of the group has now made employees even more suspicious of the alleged equal pay. She does not want to be intimidated by the procedure, writes the employee publicly on Twitter and has created a new salary survey for an external service.
Apple employees make frustration public for the first time
Of The Verge US labor lawyers questioned were puzzled by Apple’s approach that the company could not prohibit employees from discussing salary differences. It was a “modern form of foreman in the 19th century who taught dock workers not to compare their wages”.
Apple’s culture of secrecy has long ensured that such internal differences did not leak out. It was only in the last few months that employees began to publicize their anger about corporate decisions on a larger scale – sometimes also on social media. Most recently, the end of the home office ordered by Apple caused resistance among some employees who demanded more flexibility. Due to the pandemic in the USA, Apple has apparently postponed the general return to company headquarters in the meantime.
(lbe)
