A Leadership Lesson, Care of a Class Action Suit against Apple

On Thursday, no doubt, tech retailers will pause over their turkey and stuffing to give thanks for a federal court ruling issued earlier this month.

On November 7, Judge William Alsup of the Federal District Court in San Francisco dismissed the class action lawsuit Apple retail workers brought over bag searches in the company’s California stores.

Plaintiffs didn’t challenge Apple’s right to check their bags for stolen goods — just the way that checks are carried out. Employees’ bags are searched every time they leave the store, and searches occur on personal time. Workers sought back pay for all the minutes spent waiting in line or watching security personnel rummage through their things. They also complained of the embarrassment factor, given that checks are conducted on the sales floor, in full view of customers.

Judge Alsup made a reasonable call: Apple could simply have prohibited employees from bringing bags to work. (And employees who resent the searches can always leave their bags at home.) In that light, bag checks begin to look more like an accommodation than a hassle — and the suit begins to look more like complaining than a legal complaint.

Still, we can’t help but feel that something is amiss in the sprawling Apple orchard.

After all, Apple didn’t flourish as a brand through sleek design sensibility alone. (Though Apple design is also drawing new critique.)

It flourished by building an image of Apple users and employees as a dedicated community — folks who love the products and wouldn’t trade brands for anything.

So why would Apple want its customers to watch workers being treated as anything but happy, loyal employees? And why would it want discord to flourish on retail sales floors?

According to The New York Times, “[a]t least two Apple retail-store workers complained directly to the company’s chief executive, Tim Cook, that the technology company’s policy of checking retail employees’ bags as a security precaution was embarrassing and demeaning.” Cook never responded.

There’s an important lesson in leadership here: in order to maintain vitality as a company expands, corporate values and ideals have to percolate freely from the highest echelons of management to the “lowliest” rank of workers.

That’s a tall order when you grow as big as Apple has — their California stores alone boast 12,000 employees.

But if Apple wants to maintain the cohesion and integrity of its brand, it’s a challenge that corporate leaders will have to confront.