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　　Sina Technology News Beijing time on the morning of October 13th, according to reports, Apple will withhold the latest employee benefits of its only unionized US retail store, a move that may spark labor conflicts within the technology giant.

　　The company told retail and corporate employees this week that they would increase outside training and medical benefits for employees, people familiar with the matter said. Employees can get more funding from Apple when they take training courses, and workers in some states can also take advantage of new health plan benefits, people familiar with the matter said.

　　Faced with a tight labor market and changing needs of employees during the pandemic, Apple has taken several steps to reward employees. These benefits are one of them. But the company quickly notified workers at the Towson, Maryland, retail store in Baltimore, Maryland, that they would not be able to enjoy the new benefits — the only U.S. Apple store to be unionized.

　　The reason given by Apple is that the Towson retail store needs to negotiate benefits with Apple through a collective arrangement by the union. The exclusion of unionized stores from the latest benefits has also been a flashpoint in Starbucks' labor relations -- about 250 of the coffee chain's U.S. stores have voted to unionize in the past year. Starbucks has rolled out a slew of new perks for non-unionized stores, including pay raises and student loan assistance. But the company also said it could not unilaterally provide these benefits legally to stores where union activities are taking place.

　　Apple's move could cause workers in other cities to give up on unionizing, but it also risks further angering workers. The company did not comment.

　　Employees at an Apple store in Oklahoma City will vote this week on whether to join the Communications Workers Association of America (CWA), and unions are actively mobilizing more Apple stores to vote in the coming months. On top of that, the iPhone maker has to contend with some resistance from office workers who have been asked to return to work offline in recent months.

　　The latest benefits mentioned earlier include:

　　- Apple pays for external education upfront for employees. The company has always reimbursed employees for a portion of their education, but they have now decided to prepay some of the costs up front. Only some colleges will be covered initially, but the list is expected to gradually expand.

　　- Starting Jan. 1, Apple will launch a program with Coursera to provide free memberships to Apple employees. Coursera is an online course provider, and an online subscription usually costs $399 per year.

　　- New health plan for employees in Connecticut, New York, Georgia, Washington and New Jersey: Waiver of employee out-of-pocket payments when they seek care from an Apple-approved doctor within the UnitedHealth Group network cost.

　　Experts believe that Apple's exclusion of unionized stores could be seen by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) as a violation of federal laws that prohibit threatening or discriminatory means to prevent employees from joining a union. The timing of the new benefits is also intriguing, as it coincides with the eve of the Oklahoma City Apple Store union vote.

　　“It’s hard to justify the timing of a benefit plan, other than influencing the outcome of the election,” said Wilma LIebman, a former union lawyer and NLRB president.

　　Apple has also offered other benefits to employees over the past year. The company has previously increased vacation and sick days, as well as long-term health benefits and discounts on products.

　　The Apple retail store in Maryland has joined the International Federation of Machinists and Aviation Workers (IAM), which plan to start formal negotiations with Apple. The union has provided employees with materials in recent days to help them negotiate with Apple and have conversations with managers.

　　According to a portion of the internal survey that accompanies the documentation, employees' top negotiating goals are generally higher wages, followed by adjusting the cost of living, improving work-life balance, improving communication and increasing staffing.

　　The union said Wednesday that it remains committed to helping negotiate at Apple retail stores in Maryland.

　　"Our goals remain unchanged," IAM said in a statement. "We urge Apple to negotiate in good faith so that we can reach an agreement in the coming weeks."

　　Apple's measures against unions have come under scrutiny in recent weeks. Both the NLRB and the CWA have accused the company of discriminating against employees who support the union.

　　In Starbucks' case, the union said it waived the right to negotiate benefits already offered to other stores -- meaning employees should automatically receive those benefits. Workers United, the organizer of Starbucks employees, believes the withholding of benefits is union-busting.

　　Benjamin Sachs, a professor at Harvard Law School, said that while U.S. law prohibits companies from making unilateral adjustments to unionized stores, there is no law that prohibits managers from offering unionized employees the same benefits as other employees.

　　He said that even if a comprehensive negotiated agreement had not yet been reached, it would not affect the matter: "They cannot directly increase benefits, but they can propose increases to the union."

　　"If you give benefits to non-union workers and don't give benefits to union workers, that sends a signal of favoritism and discrimination," Sachs said. "You're trying to prevent workers from unionizing."