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It’s good that they are doing that, but I can’t imagine many urban markets typical of where Apple opens stores where that is a sufficient rate. It doesn’t even match inflation going from $20 to $22.
Yeah, that's not even close to matching inflation. Given that supplies are constrained and the Fed nearly doubled the money supply over the span of a year recently, it's not surprising that average people's buying power is decreasing, in fact I don't think the full effects are being felt yet. Was ready to see $10/gal gasoline in CA, and maybe it's coming.
 
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I strongly prefer this to unionizing. Union crony fat cats don't care about employees. They are just as if not more corrupt than a lot of "evil" corporations.

This is the best case scenario for everyone - unions don't add a layer of corrupt bureaucracy to Apple, and employees get paid fairly. Win-win.
You do realize that the pressure from unions did that?
 
I strongly prefer this to unionizing. Union crony fat cats don't care about employees. They are just as if not more corrupt than a lot of "evil" corporations.

This is the best case scenario for everyone - unions don't add a layer of corrupt bureaucracy to Apple, and employees get paid fairly. Win-win.
I can only speak for the UK, but over here Union fat cats also earn big bucks. However, it’s not true to say they don’t care about employees; they passionately want better terms and conditions for workers.

I gather unions can be rather corrupt in the US, for example through connections with mobsters (is the mob still a thing these days?).

Heavily unionised sectors certainly do benefit workers. The only time I worked in a unionised place, our division was dissolved, and everyone got a huge payout. I’d only been there a year and I got 6 months’ redundancy pay, tax free. That payout only happened because of the Union’, and I wasn’t even part of it. I just happened to be part of a workforce that did.

Another example: I was shocked to find out that, because of some error somewhere, UK firefighters (heavily unionised), who can retire in their forties, will see a bit less than their typical expected £400,000 retirement payout. That’s way way higher than a typical UK pension pot, by more than a factor of ten. For many non-unionised workers, retiring at age 45 with £400,000 in the bank would be utopia. And that’s before the state pension kicks in at age 67.
 
It’s shameful for any business, especially Apple, to discourage union membership. You may think it’s bad for your staff but so much better to maintain neutral.
 
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How about stop increasing prices due to inflation so people are able to purchase one.
 
I strongly prefer this to unionizing. Union crony fat cats don't care about employees. They are just as if not more corrupt than a lot of "evil" corporations.

This is the best case scenario for everyone - unions don't add a layer of corrupt bureaucracy to Apple, and employees get paid fairly. Win-win.
Wage is only one of the many aspects of employment. While Apple also provides many other benefits, a lot of US companies don’t. Unions play a critical role here.
 
Wage is only one of the many aspects of employment. While Apple also provides many other benefits, a lot of US companies don’t. Unions play a critical role here.
The other stuff is just wage but with extra steps (or restrictions).
 
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That's impossible to tell. $22 seems market rate, and it's only a $2 increase from before. I'd believe it's union pressure if the pay were clearly above market.
For a trillion dollar corporation it’s low-balling, even Panda Express have incentive to pay their workers up to $24 an hour, seen it advertised when I went into one of their restaurants.
 
That is a good starting point. Pay your employees well to lessen the chance for unionization.
Unlikely
I strongly prefer this to unionizing. Union crony fat cats don't care about employees. They are just as if not more corrupt than a lot of "evil" corporations.

This is the best case scenario for everyone - unions don't add a layer of corrupt bureaucracy to Apple, and employees get paid fairly. Win-win.
How about letting employees decide if they want to join or start a union?
 
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I strongly prefer this to unionizing. Union crony fat cats don't care about employees. They are just as if not more corrupt than a lot of "evil" corporations.

This is the best case scenario for everyone - unions don't add a layer of corrupt bureaucracy to Apple, and employees get paid fairly. Win-win.
Unions are a ponzi scheme. So much money collected in union dues, and only a very small percent ever goes back to the union members. Meanwhile the union bosses have yachts and nice cars. Wonder where they got the money for that…
 
In 2019 Reuters estimated that unionized retail workers in the United States made an average of $50 per week more than otherwise similar non-unionized workers after accounting for union dues — about 9% higher pay. This $50/week (about $2,500/year) of average additional pay does not include the additional job benefits that unionized retail workers typically enjoy.

Labor economists have studied the union wage premium for many decades and continue to study it. There's no serious controversy or question that unionized workers are paid substantially more, on average, than non-unionized workers. And of course that's true, because otherwise employers would be pleading for unionization instead of fighting it.

Whether Apple retail employees should unionize or not is up to them, but let's stick to basic facts if we can. This metric (higher average pay) is a straight up fact.
 
$22 p/h comes to £17.46 before tax/ni/pension contributions - while I know this is for the US Apple employees I’d be living the good life on £17 p/h compared to the £10.78 I make now… (for context UK minimum wage is £9.50 = $11.97 before tax)
 
For a trillion dollar corporation it’s low-balling, even Panda Express have incentive to pay their workers up to $24 an hour, seen it advertised when I went into one of their restaurants.
Interesting - you quoted me - but that wasn't my quote.

Also - it could be location dependent - Apple probably pays more in higher cost locations. I can assure you Panda Express doesn't start people at $24/hr in upstate NY.
 
This is great to hear. $22 isn’t even close to a living wage here in the San Jose Bay Area but it’s a great start. Well done Apple. My wife was hired, with no prior experience, at $27 an hour to book travel for a Semiconductor company in a Bay Area. That was over 12 years ago. I only mentioned that as a comparison to living wage needed today In this area.
 
For a trillion dollar corporation it’s low-balling, even Panda Express have incentive to pay their workers up to $24 an hour, seen it advertised when I went into one of their restaurants.
Apple’s lowest starting hourly wage will be $22 an hour. A fast food restaurant paying “up to $24 an hour” is not paying everyone that. Starting pay at Panda Express is going to be $10-$15 an hour, maybe lower and maybe higher in some locations. No Panda Express in my city is paying a cashier $24 an hour as a new hire.
 
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