# Apple’s Australian workers go on Christmas strike demanding better wages, work terms
Author:  Pal Sinha, Barnali 
Author URL: https://financedigest.com/author/pal-sinha-barnali
Published: 2022-12-23
Category: NEWS
Category URL: https://financedigest.com/category/news
Meta Title: Apple workers in Australia strike over working conditions, may impact Christmas sales
Meta Description: Apple workers in Australia strike for better conditions and wages, potentially impacting sales during peak Christmas shopping time. RAFFWU demands fair
URL: https://financedigest.com/apples-australian-workers-go-on-christmas-strike-demanding-better-wages-work-termshtml

![undefined](https://prod.superblogcdn.com/site_cuid_cm5qst7v3003gwirgwqtxn8i8/images/2022-12-23t051700z4lynxmpeibm03irtroptp4australia-apple-labor-1736814688039-compressed.jpg)

(Reuters) – Apple Inc’s workers in Australia initiated a strike Friday afternoon, demanding better working conditions and wages, a workers’ union said, a move that might dent sales of the tech giant during the peak Christmas shopping time.

Workers represented by Australia’s Retail and Fast Food Workers Union (RAFFWU) had earlier this month announced a walk out from Apple’s retail outlets nationwide at 3 PM local time (0400 GMT) on Dec. 23, with plans to stay away throughout Christmas Eve.

The strike comes in the wake of the [tech giant facing disruption at its flagship iPhone plant in China](https://www.financedigest.com/dutch-responds-to-us-china-policy-with-a-plan-to-curb-semiconductor-tech-exports.html "Dutch responds to US China policy with a plan to curb semiconductor tech exports") owing to a rare workers’ protest against ultra-severe COVID rules in the country and poor handling of the situation at the factory.

Earlier in June, Apple [workers in Maryland, United States, became the first retail employees of the tech giant to unionize in the country as workers continued to criticize the company’s working](https://www.financedigest.com/1-in-5-uk-workers-believe-there-is-a-gender-divide-with-work-uniforms.html " 1 in 5 UK workers believe there is a gender divide with work uniforms") conditions.

RAFFWU, which is at the forefront of the strike, claims an eight-year old agreement denies workers “weekends, consecutive days off, [set rosters, set days](https://www.financedigest.com/love-in-a-time-of-inflation-how-much-will-valentines-day-set-you-back.html "Love in a time of inflation: how much will Valentine’s Day set you back?") of work, 12-hour breaks between shifts, overtime rates,” among others.

The 2014 agreement is one such agreement which pushed [workers below the legal minimum,” the union](https://www.financedigest.com/exclusive-teamsters-organizing-workers-unions-at-9-amazon-com-facilities-in-canada.html "Exclusive-Teamsters organizing workers’ unions at 9 Amazon.com facilities in Canada") alleged, demanding the iPhone maker immediately return to the table and negotiate a fair agreement.

Apple declined a Reuters request for comment.

(Reporting by Jaskiran Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich)


---
This blog is powered by Superblog. Visit https://superblog.ai to know more.
---