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

[urbanlung]

If we declared war, we won. Otherwise it was just a vested interest. I can think of 3 very important terror leaders that have been rubbed out nonetheless.

Terror leaders that exist because of the US's meddling in other people's affairs and who have at other times been supported by the US when it suited them. Whilst the US has achieved many wonderful things it is also fair to say that it is probably the worlds greatest exporter of terrorism.

 

[ps45]

Wait just a freakin second. I dont have a water cooler where I work. And no free lunches. And only get paid 12 out of 12 months. I think I will go on strike as well and demand those things, and add another month paid vacation to it as well!!

Ah but do you work in an Apple store?

You should take a walk around Apple's campus and see the perks that side of the business gets. Better still, see the amount of money that's being poured into the spaceship - enough money going into just the parking structure to give every Apple store employee worldwide free lunches for life. Why does Apple think retail store employees shouldn't get perks, but the losers who turned out that Maps app (*spits aside*) should get their lunches for a few cents?

 

[Scarrus]

We have washing machines, driers, dishwashers and more reliable plumbing. All not so common in Europe.

We have washing machines, driers, dishwashers and more reliable plumbing. All not so common in the poor parts of the US.


Corrected that for you

 

[Dredd67]

French user here.

Guys guys, please calm down.

Let me explain you how things work in France (guess since I'm French it's legit):



Salary:

13 month salary: yes, several jobs give you that. Actually, it's more like savings, or stock options that you get at the end of the year: your yearly salary is divided in 13, and you get 1/13th each month, and 2/12th at the end of the year. Nice timing for Xmas. The only issue with that is that is has sorta defined a new monthly salary standard, that is applied also to people who get paid only 12 monthes. The minimum salary is around 1100 euros/ month, and that for a full time job. The median salary is around 1500.

Working time
:
We get 5 weeks of vacations: yes, 25 days a year. And 35 hours a week. Problem is that applies only to "office" jobs. Any other job needs more time, and you have to do it or get fired. And you're not paid for it if you're managing someone else. You get paid if you're on the bottom of the pyramid but then, no boss will give that much work anyway, to avoid having to pay you. (heavy simplification here)

Unions

In France, they are both weak and strong: Weak in the way they represent only a tiny fraction of the workers, strong because they're the only people CEOs and politicians talk to about job issues.

Life cost

We're on an site so let's take an example: choose any product, look for its price in $ and you'll instantly get the price in €. Now look at the currency value and understand we pay much more for the same product. Same goes for almost everything, except for health. Medicare is a joke if you compare it to what we have here, one of the most protective health system (but also ruining the country)

Politics and employment

We have more than 10% of unemployement in France. Given that, and what's stated above, you can understand that people don't have anything like a dolce vita.
Add to that the fact that our politicians are like yours : whatever side you choose, you'll be disappointed. The only moves they do for employment are most of the time irrelevant, directed against the unemployed, or just made to please the companies.

History

Like in the US, we fought for our freedom and our rights: this is something burnt into our genes, we can't stop it. And our culture allows strike as medium of expression, so we express ourselves as any other way is promised to failure.

Cheers from France.

 

[apolloa]

Here's a simple way to look at things.

France has problems with peoples rights and how they work and live.

America has problems with death and violence and war.

I sure know which one I prefer, then again being British I sure know which I prefer as an ally!! lol.

 

[Macist]

what a joke.

unions + european "benefits" explain why nothing excellent ever gets done on that side of the world.

Er.. what does the States lead the world in these days? Violent crime? Consumer debt? Low educational attainment? School massacres? Bombing far off countries?

Well, you DO spend more on healthcare than anyone... too bad most of that goes on giving every child ritalin so their parents can watch a 100" TV in peace and every mopey teen gets prozac on top and drug cocktails get funnelled into the clinically obese... while millions have little access to good healthcare. France, Spain, Italy, Germany, the UK, Canada, Australia and Japan all have far higher life expectancy, dude.

Still, at least you have fuh-ree-dum and liberdee, which is why you have more intelligence agencies than any other nation spying on you and an Orwellian 'department of homeland security'.

I'd sooner put up with a few strikes than the American way.

Get a passport. See the world. USA isn't Kazakhstan but there are dozens of places just as good and a fair few that are demonstrably better.

 

[klaxamazoo]

Question for the French:

Are you paid once a month or every four weeks? I'm guessing that it is every 4 weeks because that comes out to 13 paychecks a year.

I had a job that paid every four weeks instead of once a month and I really liked it. The yearly amount was the same, but it helped me budget and once a year I had an extra paycheck's worth of cash to spend on whatever I wanted.

Anyway, it is kind of sad seeing a bunch of American forum members whining about how other nations do their payroll. There are lots of ways to divide up a paycheck: once month (12/year), twice a month (24/year), once every 4 weeks (13/year), once every two weeks (26/year).

 

[brentsg]

Well said. A lot of people on this thread seem to think it's virtuous to work yourself to death so the rich can get richer.

I don't think anyone really thinks the current situation in the US is a good thing. But France is already on the complete opposite end of the spectrum and these people are DEMANDING more. And for low skilled laborers no less..

I get the 13 month shell game, but they aren't looking for their pay to be prorated, they're looking for a raise on their already comfortable arrangement.

 

[camperdown9]

Hi

Its really difficult to compare like for like. We need to remember that many people in France never expect to be able to buy their own homes. However they expect holidays and good standard of medical care.

If you earn between €26,000- €70,000 per year income tax in France is 30%. In addition to this there are two sets of taxes that each household pay. This year the total for the two of those was in my case €3000.

Then there is the cost of things.

iPhone 4s 16gb sim free

France €579/£462/$750
UK £449/€561/$728
US $594/€458/£366

Alex

 

[kerryb]

Some people know how to live

Americans in general have no idea how much better the working man/woman has it in most European countries. In France for example everyone regardless of citizenship is provided with "free" healthcare. The French government pay less than the US Gov yet they include everyone because they have removed the middle man insurance companies that are the main reason for out of control healthcare in our country. Everyone that has a job is given 4 weeks vacation and it is part of the law. It works for the French and others countries in Europe because they can agree on policies that directly benefit the average person and although they pay hight taxes on average to American counterparts they see real life benefits. Yes the French strike a lot but at least they still have unions to represent them all we have in the US are politicians that are servants to their donors and not their voters.

 

[macchiato2009]

Guys guys, please calm down.

Let me explain you how things work in France (guess since I'm French it's legit):



Salary:

13 month salary: yes, several jobs give you that. Actually, it's more like savings, or stock options that you get at the end of the year: your yearly salary is divided in 13, and you get 1/13th each month, and 2/12th at the end of the year. Nice timing for Xmas. The only issue with that is that is has sorta defined a new monthly salary standard, that is applied also to people who get paid only 12 monthes. The minimum salary is around 1100 euros/ month, and that for a full time job. The median salary is around 1500.

Working time
:
We get 5 weeks of vacations: yes, 25 days a year. And 35 hours a week. Problem is that applies only to "office" jobs. Any other job needs more time, and you have to do it or get fired. And you're not paid for it if you're managing someone else. You get paid if you're on the bottom of the pyramid but then, no boss will give that much work anyway, to avoid having to pay you. (heavy simplification here)

Unions

In France, they are both weak and strong: Weak in the way they represent only a tiny fraction of the workers, strong because they're the only people CEOs and politicians talk to about job issues.

Life cost

We're on an site so let's take an example: choose any product, look for its price in $ and you'll instantly get the price in €. Now look at the currency value and understand we pay much more for the same product. Same goes for almost everything, except for health. Medicare is a joke if you compare it to what we have here, one of the most protective health system (but also ruining the country)

Politics and employment

We have more than 10% of unemployement in France. Given that, and what's stated above, you can understand that people don't have anything like a dolce vita.
Add to that the fact that our politicians are like yours : whatever side you choose, you'll be disappointed. The only moves the do for employment are most of the time irrelevant, directed against the unemployed, or just made to please the companies.

History

Like in the US, we fought for our freedom and our rights: this is something burnt into our genes, we can't stop it. And our culture allows strike as medium of expression, so we express ourselves as any other way is promised to failure.

Cheers from France.

I thought that some members of this forum would understand that...

unfortunately i am wrong

 

[Rot'nApple]

13 months of pay? Lol France.

13?! Isn't that supposed to be an unlucky number? The French should definitely go for 14 months pay!
/
/

 

[futbalguy]

Terror leaders that exist because of the US's meddling in other people's affairs and who have at other times been supported by the US when it suited them. Whilst the US has achieved many wonderful things it is also fair to say that it is probably the worlds greatest exporter of terrorism.

It's difficult to know when to meddle and when not to. If we don't intervene, people act like we aren't using our military strength to help and people are hurt. If we do, everyone acts like we are bothering people and 5 years later they are upset with us for acting like we should watch over the place we had Americans dying to protect. I will just say that the world might be a much different place if we didn't have our military strength, sometimes intervening to help other countries. Much much different.

 

[ps45]

Why does it always come down to weight with Europeans! Let me tell you, I was in Europe in a primarily European cruse (very few to no Americans. Few people spoke English, at least as their primary language) around the Mediterranean. Most people were SHOVELING down hamburgers, french fries, and ice cream at record rates. It was like they had never seen food before! Our cities also have much higher air quality due to the vastly lower number of smokers here so we must do something right

Yeah I'd check your sample
Strikes me that the kind of people whose idea of a holiday is to stay in an all-inclusive hotel that floats them around are quite likely to be on the rotund size!

 

[marksman]

Dear Americans ridiculing the 13th month of pay,

Do you get a bonus at the end of the year? Yes? Well that's your 13th month of pay.

Love and kisses,

Socialist Europe.

A mandatory 13th month of pay does not equal a bonus

 

[urbanlung]

Three asses that slaughtered millions of civilians.

I think you'll find that the US outranks everyone else combined in the the number of people killed by acts of aggression.

 

[mr.steevo]

I think unions have a helpful place in the workforce but I don't see this example as making much sense.

It's too bad this thread boiled down to "my country is better than yours".

 

[paulrbeers]

Everyone keeps saying all they would do is slice up the salaries differently....

So 30,000 / 12 = 2500

Now 30,000 / 13 = 2307.70

If you really think that was all the Union was asking for, don't you think Apple would be fine with that? Seriously... Apple is smarter than that. That's just an accounting trick.

Most likely the Union is really asking for:

13 x 2500 = 32500. Basically an 8% raise.

 

[Cinematographer]

We have washing machines, driers, dishwashers and more reliable plumbing. All not so common in Europe.

You must be kidding. You're probably still proud of these top-loading, vertical-axis washing machines I saw during my time travelling through the US. Does anyone ever get his clothes clean with these machines from the middle ages? It was kind of shocking to see how far behind this country is.

 

[LagunaSol]

And still the french and other europeans, are on average slimmer than people from the USA. So we must do something right.

Crappy food?

 

[Will do good]

What a bunch of entitle, lazy Socialist.

Fire them, but wait then they could collect unemployment for the next 3 years.

 

[iChrist]

.

Haha. French. Trying to be the next Greece. It's hard work trying to be so lazy.

 

[Want300]

yes free water fountain

the AC has been down for ages at the Apple Store at the Louvre, staff has been working for the last 3 years with inconsistent temperature conditions topping 40°C

try to work in these conditions before criticizing

as for meal vouchers... Opera and Louvre are locating in very expensive tourist locations of Paris

unless you want to eat something else than this kind of crap, one must spend a significant amount everyday, compared to low wages given in France

First, The A/C, assuming that is true. That is legit.

Second, Can't people make their own lunch? Eating out is their choice.

Third, Apple retail employees are paid decently given what they are, a retail sales person. They make more than Best Buy employees, clothing store employees, walmart employees...

When I was in college working for Circuit City and then Best Buy, I would have loved to work at Apple, I would have made more money and the amount of products I would need to have adequate knowledge on would have been cut by at least 50%

 

[Renzatic]

Crappy food?

That only applies to the English. French food is great.

 

[dbft]

Many Americans in this thread seem to be like the stereotype of North Koreans - thinking that the rest of the world must suck and nothing can possibly be better than how they have it.