Apple Cuts Back On Retail Employee Raises As Pandemic-Era Generosity Fades

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has reportedly offered smaller pay raises to its retail employees this year, returning to pre-pandemic levels, with average annual raises, in contrast to the atypical pay hikes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

What Happened: After last year’s generous pay increases of roughly 8% to 10% annually, Apple has scaled back, revealing average raises of about 4% for its retail staff, reported Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter.  

This marks a return to levels seen in 2020 and earlier.

This reduction also extends to AppleCare technical support employees, who previously experienced similar pay boosts during the pandemic.

See Also: Apple Nailed Custom Processors But Tripped Hard On Its Own Modem Chips For iPhone 15

Most Apple salespeople in the U.S. now earn between $22 and $30 per hour, while AppleCare roles offer slightly higher compensation. 

Additionally, Apple has issued restricted stock units and bonuses to its employees, although this year’s packages are generally capped at around $2,000, the report noted. 

Apple increased its minimum hourly wage from $20 to $22 and implemented pay raises earlier than usual last year. However, the economic landscape has since shifted.

Inflation and wage growth have cooled, and labor unionization efforts have made minimal progress in 2023, with only two out of approximately 270 U.S. Apple locations voting to unionize.

Why It’s Important: Earlier this week, it was reported that unions representing Apple Store employees in France demanded a 7% pay increase during the iPhone 15 launch. 

Just last week, members of the United Auto Workers or UAW union initiated historic concurrent strikes against the “Detroit Three” automakers: General Motors (NYSE:GM), Ford Motor Co. (NYSE:F), and Stellantis (NYSE:STLA).

The primary demands from the union include a 40% increase in wages, the abolition of a tiered compensation structure, and a restoration of defined-benefit pension plans.

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