Apple retail workers in Atlanta file for a union election, a first

• Workers at an Apple retail location in Atlanta, Georgia have filed for a union election.
• They're the first retail location for the tech giant to file for an election, and would be the first to unionize if successful.

Workers at an Apple store in Atlanta have filed for a union election, a first for the tech giant's retail workers.

At Apple's Cumberland Mall retail location, over 70% of workers at who would be eligible for the unit have signed union cards, according to a press release. The workers are seeking representation by the Communication Workers of America (CWA). Bloomberg Law reports that the union would comprise 107 workers.

If a vote with the National Labor Relations Board is successful, it would make the Cumberland Mall location the first unionized Apple retail location. Bloomberg reports the group would be called Apple Workers Union.

The vote filing comes on the tail of an organizing campaign at Apple's flagship store in New York's Grand Central Terminal. Workers there have voted to affiliate with Workers United, according to their website, and the Washington Post reported that employees have begun collecting signatures to unionize.

"A number of us have been here for many years, and we don't think you stick at a place unless you love it," Derrick Bowles, a Genius worker at the Cumberland location and a union member, said in a press release. "Apple is a profoundly positive place to work, but we know that the company can better live up to their ideals and so we're excited to be joining together with our coworkers to bring Apple to the negotiating table and make this an even better place to work."

Apple did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

The Washington Post previously reported that, other than the Grand Central location, at least three other Apple retail locations were in the process of unionizing. Vice reports that there are drives at at least six stores. Workers have also undertaken other coordinated labor actions. On Christmas Eve, over 50 retail employees walked out as part of an action organized by worker advocacy group Apple Together, according to The Huffington Post. They were calling for better working conditions, including COVID-19 protections, hazard pay, and protection from abusive customers.

The Atlanta filing makes Apple retail workers the latest group to join the union wave surging among retail and technology workers. Workers at an Amazon warehouse in Staten Island successfully voted to form a union in early April, making history as the first to unionize under the new Amazon Labor Union. Meanwhile, Starbucks locations across the country have been voting to organize with Workers United, the union that Apple workers at Grand Central say they hope to join. Recently, Starbucks workers at several stores have notched unanimous wins — meaning every single eligible worker voted in favor of unionizing.