Apple to Give Employees $500 Off Macs and $250 Off iPads

[fozzy.bear]

so people working at or close to the poverty level don't deserve a break?

Retail workers, right next to the folks who clean the floors and toilets in the malls and high rise buildings deserve whatever perks they can get! It's a ****** job and nobody really respects you. The brand may be a vaunted brand, but it's still retail and you are still a 21st century servant. Not Warren Buffet's secretary, the guy or gal who comes to clean for minimum wage.

 

[britboyj]

Vis-a-vis bonuses, in the retail world only Managers get bonuses, everyone else is straight hourly regardless whether full or part time! so the hardware discount can be huge to someone working retail. (Don't even begin to talk about stock options that real Apple employees get!)

Best Buy pays monthly bonuses to Seniors on up, including Supervisors and Managers. I was a Senior at 19, it's not uncommon, they're hardly "management." The same is true at many, many other retailers. No, line level doesn't get a bonus but the next tier up does.

Best Buy also has a program called Blue Crew bucks where the entire store can bonus once a year, even part timers.

Apple's zero-bonuses except for managers is an exception to the rule. You have Lead Specialists (or you did, now you have Experts), Lead Creatives, Back of House Lead and Lead Geniuses before you get to Managers, other than managers, none of those people get bonuses, despite ostensibly doing the most work in the store.

Apple does pay more generally speaking for a line-level Specialist than most retailers in a give area, and the benefits are FANTASTIC (no company I've worked for since has had anything close).

And FYI - Stock options are open to all Full-time Apple Employees, not just Corporate.

 

[fozzy.bear]

And FYI - Stock options are open to all Full-time Apple Employees, not just Corporate.

You confuse Employee Stock Purchase Plan with Stock Options which are granted much like bonuses. ESPP the employee Purchases whereas Stock Options are GIFTED....i.e. if Tim Cook stays he gets gifted 1MM shares.

 

[pacalis]

Wow, you guys are really nuts about discounts. I thought this was a rumors forum?

So to me this announcement means two things.

First, there will be new mac announcements soon - the delay on the discount suggests that they won't be wanting to discount new, high demand product - so I'm expecting whatever comes out will be shipping in April latest.

Second, it also suggests that Mac is very interested in increasing its computing market share, as it's really become a phone company of late.

 

[the8thark]

Any evidence that Apple does pay lower wages than other retail stores? For example, if you take a random Apple store, and check the wages for staff at the two stores to the left and to the right of it, do you think Apple pays less?

I'm pretty sure all 3 of the stores would want to pay you the lowest wage possible. No company really likes all their profit going into staff wages. I's probably just as low as the 2 next door stores. Still low though.

 

[KnightWRX]

First, there will be new mac announcements soon - the delay on the discount suggests that they won't be wanting to discount new, high demand product - so I'm expecting whatever comes out will be shipping in April latest.

Where did you get that from ? The discount is not a time limited thing, it's a new benefit for present and future employees, which they can use anytime as long as it's not more than once every 3 years.

So they will sure be able to get the new hardware, even if it's high demand, with this.

You're reading way too deep into this, this is simply a new bonus/perk/taxable benefit the employees are getting, no different than what other companies offer.

 

[jacob11]

I wish, i could work in Apple.

 

[britboyj]

You confuse Employee Stock Purchase Plan with Stock Options which are granted much like bonuses. ESPP the employee Purchases whereas Stock Options are GIFTED....i.e. if Tim Cook stays he gets gifted 1MM shares.

Fair enough, but Executives are a little different than say, everyone else. Calling Executives the only "real" Apple employees is stupid. No one gets gifted Stock Options as bonuses unless they have at least VP in their title, or possible corporate product managers.

 

[Ncognito125]

Honestly, this discount is underwhelming given the sky high expectations set by customers and management for very low pay. A more generous solution would be a 35-40% discount year round (versus the 25%), allowing more retail employees the opportunity to experience these great products off the floor. At $10/ hr for a specialist, purchasing a $2000 computer at even 25% off is unrealistic.

 

[jackc]

Honestly, this discount is underwhelming given the sky high expectations set by customers and management for very low pay. A more generous solution would be a 35-40% discount year round (versus the 25%), allowing more retail employees the opportunity to experience these great products off the floor. At $10/ hr for a specialist, purchasing a $2000 computer at even 25% off is unrealistic.

They make $10/hr for a reason, they're not adding that much value. Should Apple buy them a house also?

 

[ABernardoJr]

Wow, you guys are really nuts about discounts. I thought this was a rumors forum?

So to me this announcement means two things.

First, there will be new mac announcements soon - the delay on the discount suggests that they won't be wanting to discount new, high demand product - so I'm expecting whatever comes out will be shipping in April latest.

Second, it also suggests that Mac is very interested in increasing its computing market share, as it's really become a phone company of late.

I really wonder how you arrived at those two conclusions given this article.

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Marketing is not about logic. Anything that degrades the perceived value of a luxury product sold at high margins is not good for your business. You never do anything remind a customer that a product is not worth what they are paying for it.

Just look at any of the most successful luxury goods manufacturers. For example, I was recently at a baby goods store that frequently provides discount coupons that can be applied to most all things. The coupons however, have a long list of excluded brands at the bottom. On inquiring, this is not because of any policy explicitly sought by the store, but because many of the luxury goods manufacturers actually prohibit sellers from offering their items at a discount. I actually had one store owner call over angrily to a competitor when he had heard they were offering discounts on a prohibited item, because she knew the manufacturer prohibited the discount from being offered by the other business. High end brands often don't want their brand subverted by having it associated with variable or cheaper pricing -- and usually for good reason. Their customers are not of the type who want to spend a lot of time shopping around for the cheapest price on their items, yet at the same time they don't want to be disappointed that some yokel just bought the same product they spend $300 on for 1/2 the price somewhere else where they were too busy to check. Sorry, that's just human nature.

Likewise, an Apple customer doesn't want to shop in 10 different stores to find the cheapest price. They just want to walk into an Apple store, a Verizon store, a Sprint store, BestBuy, doesn't matter which one, buy the phone, and know that it is the best price they can get. Having to shop around for the cheapest price only makes them feel like there is a game that the have to play, and it makes the shopping experience unpleasant.

Apple is in fact a luxury goods manufacturer. After all, pretty much the only thing that differentiates an iPhone from a cheaper android phone is fashion and minor issues related to ease of use. Functionally, they are both capable of the same sorts of things. It's marketing 101. Steve Jobs knew it well and I have to keep my fingers crossed that it's not less appreciated by current management.

Much like the way BMWs are pretty much the same as Ford Focuses? (No disrespect to Focus owners, just getting a point across) Much of your post went a bit off base.

 

[Ncognito125]

They make $10/hr for a reason, they're not adding that much value. Should Apple buy them a house

Millions of customers opt to buy the same products at an Apple Store versus Bestbuy or the phone carriers for a reason.
"The experience" of an apple store is a huge draw, the customer service being a benchmark in the retail industry. If I were Tim Cook I'd make sure every specialist was receiving fair compensation (apple profited 400k per employee last year-higher than any other tech company), in the way of bonuses based on sales volume and attachment ratios (apple care, one to one) and meaningful discounts. A house would be cool too.

 

[pacalis]

Where did you get that from ? The discount is not a time limited thing, it's a new benefit for present and future employees, which they can use anytime as long as it's not more than once every 3 years.

According to the article program starts June 2012. It does not start immediately. So unless you think employees are really interested to buy a 3 year old macbook pro design with a 32nm chip..... or you think they want to dump the last of the bin on their employees, the delay does mean something.

Also, I assume they would not coincide this date with the iphone 5 or new macbook pro designs - which are going to be in short supply anyway. So again, I doubt they want employees competing for supply at $500 off, for their latest and greatest. So I think by June we're 2-3 months into a new product cycle.

 

[twoodcc]

i need to become friends with an apple employee!

 

[immunezone]

Not true.

Why would macrumors say things like this?

 

[joepunk]

i need to become friends with an apple employee!

I wonder if being facebook friends count or would we have to actually meet in person

 

[twoodcc]

I wonder if being facebook friends count or would we have to actually meet in person

whatever it takes!

 

[cclloyd]

With that discount every 3 years I could upgrade a rMBP for only $1k. I wouldn't mind that.