French Union Calls for Apple Retail Store Employee Strike Coinciding with iPhone 5 Launch

[faroZ06]

I suppose it is a credit to "the 1%" that they have conditioned you all through propagana to actually cry out in anger/disgust when workers demand more fair compensation. As American corporations continue to profit off the backs of workers, we are exporting our working conditions to Europe, where workers traditionally enjoyed more vacation time and better benefits than our American corporate masters allow us.

WHY wouldn't you instead ask why YOU don't get an extra thirteenth month of pay? As the most valuable company in the world, with over a hundred billion in cash and billions more in profits rolling in, why not share that success with employees?

Simple. Because it would reduce the amount available for the billionaire executives! You all get what you deserve.

(BTW I love Apple products, and I don't single out Apple - corporate avarus abounds)

Are you trying to say that the retail store workers should share the success that the Apple engineers and Apple executives created? If that was the case, I'd get a job at Apple right away. Then there would be no point of working at a smaller business. I, a highly-replaceable grunt worker, would get extra pay because the people who make the beloved Apple products make Apple lots of money.

I also don't see any "1% propaganda". The only propaganda I've seen has been from Occupy Wall Street or whoever is on strike, which seems to be the only group to ever show their side of the story on the news.

 

[faroZ06]

Those French are way behind the US. I have 6 weeks paid vacation, a water cooler, and an Espresso machine in my office.

I guess they want to live the American dream?

Keyword: "office"
I don't think these retail employees have or need offices.

 

[Rockoar]

It's France. They're socialist.

----------



I've talked with some French people before. The socialism in their country is totally out of hand. Immigrants with some children can make more money with no job (just from pensions) than a private chef. It's a terrible system.

Oh well, at least the French cities are much smarter than the American ones, the drivers much smarter, the people much nicer, and the cars all stick-shift . Seriously, the French bike lanes make the American ones look like death traps.

What a fascist comment you just made. Learn your facts before stating stupid facts like that one. At least we don't need to take a bank loan to go to college. Good luck paying for your mediocre education back on your precarious salary in free market democratic America. Oh the irony.

 

[faroZ06]

What a fascist comment you just made. Learn your facts before stating stupid facts like that one. At least we don't need to take a bank loan to go to college. Good luck paying for your mediocre education back on your precarious salary.

Learn my facts before stating stupid facts? Uh, I already did learn my facts. That's why I'm stating stupid facts.

 

[MacDav]

How's that Kool-Aid tasting?

Which kool-aid is that? Which kool-aid are you drinking?

 

[2crazy]

It's France. They're socialist.

When did the term socialism became a euphemism for bad, evil, or un-American? It's the same with liberalism. If you guys were to put the words, naziism, socialism, liberalism in order by their evilness, what would that be?

Anyway, I am not a huge fan of France or french culture. Just my preference, nothing wrong with that. However, American corporate culture doesn't work with non-Americans. Does anyone remember Walmart in Germany? It was a disaster, and they went out of business. Sometimes I wonder whether the US really abolished slavery or just extended it to the Caucasian population. What absolutely blows my mind is that people here attack everyone who has it better than them. You should be saying "I want a better life, too!" After all, the USA is the richest country in the world. But I have never seen as much poverty in the western world as here in the US. I guess they all deserve it, right?

 

[lilo777]

Everytime I'm in France, there's some huge strike happening. Post Office. Road workers. Truck drivers. The people always want more and more and they work like they don't need the money and nothing needs to get done. And they all hate their jobs. Christ, retirement age for government workers is like 45 or something. Get bent.

Every time I am in USA (and am there all the time) tens of millions of people are poor (but still consider themselves to be "middle class"). There is no easy solutions for this problem.

 

[faroZ06]

When did the term socialism became a euphemism for bad, evil, or un-American? It's the same with liberalism. If you guys were to put the words, naziism, socialism, liberalism in order by their evilness, what would that be?

I'm not saying that socialism is evil. I just think it's a bad idea that looks good from the distance. It is, by definition, un-American, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Plenty of good/neutral things are un-American. I'm un-American.

I'm all for getting rid of the current meanings for the words "liberal", "conservative", "Latino", and "Caucasian", by the way. They're inaccurate. Liberals are really left-wing, conservatives right-wing, Latinos Hispanic, and Caucasians people from Caucasia (parts of Armenia, Georgia, Iraq, Turkey, and Russia).

 

[MacDav]

I don't know either, I'm not french and don't get paid a 13th monthly salary, I'm just saying it might be and that it could be more complex than it sounds.
You say "If you work for one company and they pay you less, why wouldn't you go work for another company?" as if employees can pick and choose in the work market. This is not reality, there simply isn't enough jobs for everyone and never again will be so people wont let go of their jobs at a whim. It's the employers market, and that's exactly why unions and worker protection is important, so that employers can't abuse their advantageous position and push their employees around uninhibited.



Obama is "far left"!? You have a seriously skewed idea of the political scale. Obama isn't even on the left side of the center.

No, you have a seriously skewed idea of the political scale. You're move...

 

[lilo777]

Are you trying to say that the retail store workers should share the success that the Apple engineers and Apple executives created? If that was the case, I'd get a job at Apple right away. Then there would be no point of working at a smaller business. I, a highly-replaceable grunt worker, would get extra pay because the people who make the beloved Apple products make Apple lots of money.

I also don't see any "1% propaganda". The only propaganda I've seen has been from Occupy Wall Street or whoever is on strike, which seems to be the only group to ever show their side of the story on the news.

I'd say entire country should share some of Apple success. I always laugh when people like Mitt claim that they earned their money and poor people need to "work harder" to do the same. I would love to see how Mitt would succeed were he dropped to some poor country (like Somalia). Would his hedge fund be successful over there? Would Steve Jobs be able to create Apple in Somalia? Yes, they did not built these businesses in a vacuum (paraphrasing Obama's thesis).

 

[2crazy]

I'm calling ******** on that. Last two years we didn't have any major strike and whenever is one I can guarantee you that most people understand it and support it. At least I live in a city where transportation is affordable, with a really extensive metro line and bus services that have discounts for students, the elderly and almost anyone that needs it. It could be better, yes, of course, like everything. You are just stereotyping.

I spent some time in Paris last year. Everything was closed to strikes even the Eiffel tower stayed at home. I am joking of course. Didn't see any strikes either. But the German railways was on strike causing a 4 hours delay. Those greedy bastards! At least they are striking for something I can understand.

I work in the US as an IT manager. 2 years ago I was in charge of some minor electrical installation. The company I hired was with a different union than other electricians that were working on a larger project in the same building. As soon as they saw my electricians, they went on strike. Not for more money, or better working conditions, just because of being in different unions.

 

[faroZ06]

I'd say entire country should share some of Apple success. I always laugh when people like Mitt claim that they earned their money and poor people need to "work harder" to do the same. I would love to see how Mitt would succeed were he dropped to some poor country (like Somalia). Would his hedge fund be successful over there? Would Steve Jobs be able to create Apple in Somalia? Yes, they did not built these businesses in a vacuum (paraphrasing Obama's thesis).

The entire country does share some of Apple's success. Hello, 30% sales tax? Income tax? Property tax?

Not trying to defend Mitt Romney as a presidential candidate, but he did not start out with a company or hedge fund. I always hear that he was born rich, but his biography on Wikipedia contradicts that.

 

[normwood]

Union *************!

Cracks me up with the Chicago teachers. They wanted job security. How about you be damn good at your job and you'll have as much job security as people employed here in the good ol' USA instead of on Fantasy Island.

 

[2crazy]

I'm not saying that socialism is evil. I just think it's a bad idea that looks good from the distance. It is, by definition, un-American, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Plenty of good/neutral things are un-American. I'm un-American.

I'm all for getting rid of the current meanings for the words "liberal", "conservative", "Latino", and "Caucasian", by the way. They're inaccurate. Liberals are really left-wing, conservatives right-wing, Latinos Hispanic, and Caucasians people from Caucasia (parts of Armenia, Georgia, Iraq, Turkey, and Russia).

I actually agree with a lot you just said. But you need to expand the group of Caucasians. It's basically all white people, middle eastern, and north of Africa.

 

[faroZ06]

This is what we are heading for in America. Soon we will be "Euro America".
Obama wants us to be more like Europe. He's a really cool guy and really cares about the little people, so lets keep him in office for another 4 years. More unions, more big government bureaucracies. Higher debt and higher taxes. I can hardly wait. Healthcare that is run by the government with the efficiency and style of your local Dept. of Motor Vehicles. This will be good for everyone. Romney is not much better either, at least he is for slightly smaller government. Not much smaller though. Romney is pretending to be a conservative and Obama is pretending to be a moderate. Romney is actually a moderate and Obama is actually far left. What we need is a viable third party candidate who is financially conservative but liberal on social issues. Sorry for the rant. I got carried away.

Whatever, anything is better than declaring war on Iran and ticking off every country in the world. I like the right side better, but whenever I hear a Romney quote, it sounds like the average kid born in 2001. Arabs are terrorists! The British hate our freedom! The Russians are commies!

 

[ArtOfWarfare]

Not sure sitting on the sidelines and joining in when it is almost over counts for that much but if we must play this game what was the last war the US won without the UK on their side. Tiny Caribbean islands excluded.

Didn't the US win on the Asian front of WWII without assistance?

... we probably had help on the Manhattan project though, so maybe that front doesn't count, given how much uglier it probably would have gotten without dropping atom bombs...

 

[lilo777]

The entire country does share some of Apple's success. Hello, 30% sales tax? Income tax? Property tax?

Not trying to defend Mitt Romney as a presidential candidate, but he did not start out with a company or hedge fund. I always hear that he was born rich, but his biography on Wikipedia contradicts that.

Are you in US? We do not have 30% sales tax. Where I am, we do not have sales tax at all. Income tax? With their salaries, Apple Store employees probably pay no federal taxes (especially if they have kids or pay for college). Property tax? For what? All three of Apple office buildings? For their stores they demand and get all kinds of incentives from local authorities.

 

[faroZ06]

Are you in US? We do not have 30% sales tax. Where I am, we do not have sales tax at all. Income tax? With their salaries, Apple Store employees probably pay no federal taxes (especially if they have kids or pay for college). Property tax? For what? All three of Apple office buildings? For their stores they demand and get all kinds of incentives from local authorities.

I'm talking about France, which had 30% sales tax last time I checked. Income tax not only applies to the workers but the managers and other high-paid Apple employees. Property tax is probably low, but I included it because it exists.

 

[palmerc2]

Stupid unions and their union drones.

 

[faroZ06]

I actually agree with a lot you just said. But you need to expand the group of Caucasians. It's basically all white people, middle eastern, and north of Africa.

There's a nice Wikipedia article on the origin of the name, and it was supposed to refer to people of the Caucasus mountains but now refers to all "white" people. Fortunately, dogs from the Caucasus are still "Caucasian mountain dogs".

 

[SuperPuppy]

old quotes from my father...

And they have never been more true... Actually three quotes, but in today's society the third is leaning towards the opposite of what he meant.

1. You get out of life what you put into it. Nothing is 'free'.

2. If something comes to you without you earning it, then your probably better off without it.

3. Wish in one hand, ****** in the other and see which one fills up faster.

So, in the context of the OP, Well, 13th month salary? Hmm, How did you manage to squeeze that extra month of work in? Oh, yeah, you didn't. Free meals. Hmm, I thought that was something one provided themselves, using the money they earned by working. Whats next? Do they owe you a car or metro pass? Owe you a house to live in? And lastly, seriously, water fountains one of the big issues is not having water fountains? Last time I checked you could get water just about everywhere France, its not like its scarce.

I'd rather earn $.50 than be given a dollar.

And for the record, my father was a life long democrat and was union president of the union, up until the point where he said it's getting ridiculous the union is going to kill itself and I want no more part of it, so he quit the union and went into managment while still ensuring that work conditions were acceptable (alloy smelting plant) and people were paid a decent wage.

 

[MacDav]

You do realize that pure capitalist interests will never consider the long game right. Obama is quite middle-of-the-road. No body is perfect - not in theis day and age but I'd much rather vote for someone that wants fuel efficient vehicles and energy independence. Someone who cares about the other 47%. Mind you, I'm moving to Sweden for a job opportunity next year and am NOT excited about paying the high taxes. Unless of course, I happen to get sick or my wife has a baby or something.

Free markets offer more freedom, more opportunity less security. Socialism offers less freedom less opportunity but more security. It's always a trade off. We had a pretty good balance in the USA years ago. Not the case today. Yes, the rich have too big a slice of the american pie. Socialism is one way to correct this, but I think this type of cure is worse than the disease itself. A simple 20% flat tax with no loopholes for anybody would be a better way to go as a starting point. This will never fly though because of all the tax lawyers and tax accountants that will raise holy hell. They would all be out of work. It all seems rather hopeless. The people are mostly ignorant about politics and are busy watching the Kardashians. Enjoy Sweden. They have a pretty good thing going there as far as security goes. They believe in security over freedom. Not bad if that's what you want.

 

[senseless]

There are now 2.9 million people out of work in France, almost 10 percent of the workforce and the most in 12 years. “For the 100 employees we have in France, we have 10 employee representatives, for whom we have to organize weekly meetings even when there is nothing to discuss,” Haan says. “Every time a social security contribution changes, which is frequently, we have to update software and send our HR people for training. We can’t fire anyone without exorbitant costs.”

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-05-03/why-france-has-so-many-49-employee-companies

 

[urbanlung]

Stupid unions and their union drones.

??????

 

[MacDav]

Whatever, anything is better than declaring war on Iran and ticking off every country in the world. I like the right side better, but whenever I hear a Romney quote, it sounds like the average kid born in 2001. Arabs are terrorists! The British hate our freedom! The Russians are commies!

Yes, it's very sad. We need a candidate who combines the good ideas from both sides into one single candidate. Our founding fathers warned about having only two viable political parties. This is what we get. Two parties in gridlock. The truth is in the middle, yet we have no middle candidates. It's all about "The other side is evil", only our side has the truth.