As a current Apple Retail employee, I'd like to address some of the comments going on in this thread.
"Apple Retail employees have no technical knowledge!"
We are not hired to be robots. Customer service and social skills are valued over technical knowledge. That is not to say we don't have tech knowledge, I happen to be quite the geek myself. But the point is the HR department doesn't emphasize that as much as personality. Maybe the 1% of power users want to have a sales experience with an unfriendly, barely sociable hardcore nerd who can tell them the exact specs of every chip inside the machine, but the vast majority of customers don't. They want to find out what machine best suits their lifestyle from someone they can relate to.
And for those 1% by the way, that's WHY you're handed off. Because we want to serve 100% of the customers and if your questions do exceed our knowledge we find someone who has the answers.
"Working Apple Retail sucks because we're overworked!"
I doubt any of the people in this thread other than myself that have claimed to work at Apple actually have. It's just not true that we're overworked. For the part-timers, most of us want MORE hours, not less. I think the person who wrote this article that said something like "whatever drove them to apply for part-time in the first place" doesn't actually understand the Apple Retail process. Almost everyone is hired PT. Getting FT is more like a promotion rather than about availability. It's not like all the PT people want to be PT and are crying themselves to sleep because they had to work 24 hours instead of 20. Maybe a handful really want to stay PT, but most don't.
As for the full time people, they aren't overworked either. They work 40 hours, just like any other FT job. In fact, HR actually gets a bit pissed if you run over 40. You're not allowed to take OT unless the management approves it, which is rare. The only time I've ever worked OT (and true for most employees) is during a launch. And as you all know, that's only once or twice per year.
In terms of the work itself making us "overworked", that's not the case either. Granted, it's busier than other retail. But if anything that makes the time go by faster. I think the reason people think it's so "horrific" is because our society has become accustomed to the idea that "work" is texting and surfing for 90% of your shift, and grudgingly helping customers the other 10%. That's not how it's supposed to be, and so no it's not the way it is at Apple. We get a 15 minute break for every 4 hours of work, a half-hour lunch for a 5.5-7.5 hour shift, and an hour lunch for an 8-9 hour shift. Spaced out evenly it's usually only about two hours of continuous work before you get a breather. And the managers are usually pretty good at making sure you get your breaks. If we're really busy and you go past your break time, they'll come find you and tell you to take it, even if there's a line.
"Apple Retail employees just stand around!"
We don't have chairs and for the most part don't have cash registers anymore, so yes, we stand around on the floor. That doesn't mean we won't help you. Just ask. We do our best to ask customers first if they need help, but sometimes that can get repetitive. No one wants to be asked by 10 people in a row "do you need help?". Besides, one of the biggest reasons you need help at other retail store is because the electronics are fake models. At Apple, you can experience the real products. Would you rather listen to one of us drone on about an iPad or play with one yourself?
Sure sometimes when it gets slow we socialize with each other. That happens in any workplace. Coworkers who like each other and know each other are more productive in my experience. But if you see us standing there talking about football, walk up and either join in, telling us about your team, or ask us if we can assist you. But don't just brood in the corner, then storm out, go home, and rage online.
"They put me in a queue!"
Most stores I go to (non-Apple, that is) have ropelines near checkout, where you stand and wait to pay for your merchandise. It get's pretty boring standing in a line. At Apple, we too get busy, but instead we have a virtual "line" called iQueue, that allows you to continue to walk around and browse while still retaining your place "in line". This is a feature of our stores, not a detractor. If we can help you instantly we will. If we can't, we ask you to wait just like any other business would, except you can do it without the confines of standing still in a physical line.
"Just give me one of those scanners and I'll check myself out!"
It's called EasyPay for customers, it's in the Apple Store App for iOS devices available on the App Store. Go download it and next time check yourself out.
"The customer IS always right, why do they argue with me?"
Specifically to Moduz's experience, we do our best to make sure our customers get what they need. The best way to do that is to get to know the customer. Now for a rare power-user like yourself, yes you want to be in and out. And maybe the employee should have gotten a better read that you were ready to go. We aren't perfect. Next time just politely say "I appreciate your advice but I'm sure this is the model I want and I'm ready to check out." 99% of Apple Employees will ring you up at that point, no questions asked.
Keep in mind though we do this to help. Not just to make sure you get the right computer, but for other reasons too. One, making you aware of everything we have to offer. Most electronics stores don't do training on their products right in the store. So customers don't expect it. But we do. So sometimes if we talk a bit you find out, "wow you guys do training right here in store? I didn't know that!"
"Your business model of no cash registers is all wrong!"
Well, our record-breaking profits would disagree with you. As would the vast majority of my customers who tell me that the ability of me to check them out with my EasyPay right then and there is really awesome and convenient.
"I don't like how busy Apple Stores are. I don't like their employee's attitude. I don't like their model. I don't like any of it."
They don't come? I've never understood internet trolls. Why complain repeatedly about a business but continue to shop there and visit rumor sites about their products?
