Apple France workers call strike ahead of iPhone 15 launch

Unions at the Apple France stores have called for a strike on Friday and Saturday ahead of the iPhone 15 launch, demanding better pay and working conditions.

“Management having decided to ignore our perfectly legitimate demands and concerns, the four unions of Apple Retail France …call for a strike on Sept. 22 and 23,” CGT Apple Retail said in a union front statement on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday.

The unions also called for workers to demonstrate on Friday morning at the Paris Opera Garnier, which is next to one of Apple’s flagship stores in Paris.

CGT Apple Retail union member Karine Chouchane told French daily Liberation that Apple France workers may mobilise in three quarters of Apple’s stores in France.

Apple France could not immediately be reached for comment.

Last week, Apple was rocked by a French government decision to suspend sales of iPhone 12 handsets after tests which it said found breaches of radiation exposure limits.

On Friday, Apple pledged to update software on iPhone 12s in France to settle the dispute over radiation levels but concerns in other European countries signalled it may have to take similar action elsewhere.