Apple workers protest company call to return to in-person work

A group of Apple workers are circulating a petition protesting the company’s push to get workers back to the office.

Last week, CEO Tim Cook set a September 5 deadline for Bay Area workers to be back in the company’s headquarters in Cupertino at least three days a week – Tuesdays and Thursdays, as well as a third day determined by individual teams.

The shift to the third flexible day is already a step back from the initial plan to require employees to also come in person on Mondays.

The petition was launched by Apple Together, which identifies itself as a global solidarity union made up of workers from all parts of the company. 

“We believe that Apple should encourage, not prohibit, flexible work to build a more diverse and successful company where we can feel comfortable to “think different” together,” the petition states.

Other tech giants like Facebook and Twitter have issued policies allowing their staff to work from home indefinitely while Apple has long maintained that employees should expect to return to the office eventually.