(TOWSON, MARYLAND) - The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers’ Coalition of Organized Retail Employees (IAM CORE) has reached a tentative agreement with Apple that improves work-life balance, raises pay and helps protect job security.

IAM CORE represents 85 Employees at Apple’s retail store in Towson, Maryland. 

Workers at the Apple Retail Store, which is now the first in the country to Unionize, will vote on the tentative agreement on August 6th.

“From the beginning, IAM CORE’s mission has been to improve Apple for our Employees, customers and communities,” the IAM CORE Negotiating Committee said. “By reaching a tentative agreement with Apple, we are giving our Members a voice in their futures and a strong first step toward further gains.  Together, we can build on this success in store after store and grow the power IAM CORE has started here in Maryland.”

Highlights of the tentative three-year agreement include: Work-Life Balance: Scheduling improvements with protections for both current and part time Members; Pay Increases: Average raises of 10% over the life of the contract and increases in starting pay for 80% of job classifications; Job Security: Limits on contracted Employees and a severance clause; and Transparency: A fair and clear disciplinary process with protections and accountability.

The agreement also maintains all current benefits, as well as an agreement to bargain over any future additions.

“The true partnership between the IAM, IAM CORE and Apple Workers has led us to this historic moment,” IAM Eastern Territory General Vice President David Sullivan said. “We’re extremely proud to be the first Union to take on this fight for Apple Workers.”

IAM CORE Members, who in June 2022 became the first Apple Retail Store to organize into a Union in the United States, had been negotiating with Apple management since January 2023. 

In May 2024, IAM CORE Members voted overwhelmingly to approve a Strike sanction against Apple as management continued to stall negotiations.

The IAM is one of North America’s largest and most diverse Industrial Trade Unions, representing 600,000 active and Retired Members in the aerospace, defense, airlines, railroad, transit, health care, automotive and other industries. 

To Directly Access This Labor News Story, Go To: IAM CORE, First U.S. Unionized Apple Retail Store Workers, Reach Historic Tentative Labor Agreement with Tech Giant - IAMAW (goiam.org)