Apple is accused in a new lawsuit of illegally monitoring employees' personal devices and iCloud accounts, and also prohibiting employees from discussing pay and working conditions.
A complaint filed Sunday in California state court by Apple's head of digital advertising, Amar Bhakta, alleges that the company allows employees to install software on personal devices they use for work, and that Apple uses their email, photo library, health They claim that they are asking for access to information such as the state of the company. smart home” data and other personal information.
At the same time, the lawsuit alleges that Apple imposes confidentiality policies on employees that prohibit them from: discuss working conditionsincluding the media, engage in legally protected whistleblowing.
Bhakta, who has worked at Apple since 2020, said he was prohibited from talking about his job on a podcast and was told to remove information about his working conditions from his LinkedIn profile.
“Apple's surveillance policies and practices chill employee whistleblowing, competition, freedom of movement in the job market, and freedom of speech, thereby unlawfully restraining employees,” the lawsuit said.
In a statement provided by a spokesperson, Apple said the lawsuit's allegations are baseless and that employees are trained annually about their right to discuss working conditions.
“At Apple, we are committed to creating the best products and services in the world, and we strive to protect the inventions our teams create for our customers,” the company said.
Bhakta's lawyers also represent two women who filed a lawsuit in June accusing Apple of systematically underpaying female employees in its engineering, marketing and AppleCare departments. Apple said it is committed to inclusion and fair pay.
Apple also illegally prevents employees from discussing issues such as sexual bias and wage discrimination with each other and the media, including by restricting the use of social media and the workplace messaging app Slack, the U.S. Labor Commissioner said. It also faces at least three complaints from the association. The company denies wrongdoing.
The new lawsuit was filed under California's unique law that allows workers to sue employers on behalf of the state and keep 35% of fines recovered.
