Earlier this week, a group of Apple employees announced that they were organizing under the hashtag #AppleToo to collect stories from workers at all levels of the company in regards to workplace issues. Now, #AppleToo organizers say they have already collected almost 500 stories of such issues, and they plan to go public starting on Monday.
In a post on Twitter today (via Protocol), the #AppleToo organizers wrote that the “main thread” in the responses and stories they’ve received so far is “being ignored by HR.” The full post explained:
As of now, the #AppleToo organizers are working with employees to help them file stories to external labor organizations, like the California Department of Fair Housing and Employment and the federal Equal Opportunity Employment Commission. They plan to go public and share stories beginning on Monday.
So far, we’ve received nearly 500 responses, and hundreds of stories of racism, sexism, discrimination, retaliation, bullying, sexual and other forms of harassment, and sexual assault that happened at the hands of a colleague off of campus.
The main thread? Being ignored by HR.
On the #AppleToo website, the organizers say:
According to a report from The Verge earlier this week, “only about 15 current and former Apple employees were directly involved in the organizing effort.”
For too long, Apple has evaded public scrutiny. The truth is that for many Apple workers — a reality faced disproportionately by our Black, Indigenous, and other colleagues from minoritized racial, gender, and historically marginalized groups of people — the culture of secrecy creates an opaque, intimidating fortress. When we press for accountability and redress to the persistent injustices we witness or experience in our workplace, we are faced with a pattern of isolation, degradation, and gaslighting.
No more. We’ve exhausted all internal avenues. We’ve talked with our leadership. We’ve gone to the People team. We’ve escalated through Business Conduct. Nothing has changed.
