Cher Scarlett, a leader of #AppleToo, is leaving Apple and will withdraw her NLRB complaint after reaching a settlement
Cher Scarlett, an Apple Inc. employee who created a protest movement within the company over pay transparency and other workplace issues, is leaving the iPhone maker after reaching a settlement.
BloombergMark Gurman
Context & Ripple Effects
Scarlett had become a prominent #AppleToo organizer, with the campaign documenting workplace concerns including racism, retaliation and harassment in earlier coverage. Her departure and planned complaint withdrawal appeared to remove one of the movement's highest-profile internal advocates.
The settlement did not close the dispute: Scarlett later said Apple had not executed it in good faith and that she would continue her NLRB complaint. That reversal makes the announced exit an inflection point in a longer employee-rights conflict, rather than its conclusion.
First-order effects
Apple loses a visible #AppleToo leader as Scarlett leaves, while the reported settlement was meant to end her NLRB case.
Scarlett's later reversal keeps her complaint active after the proposed settlement, putting Apple back into a dispute it had appeared to resolve.
Second-order effects
The failed settlement execution turns an individual departure into a credibility test for Apple’s handling of employee complaints, alongside the workplace allegations raised in Scarlett’s #AppleToo profile.
Other current and former Apple employees retain a live example that a negotiated exit need not end an NLRB challenge.
Third-order effects
Apple’s later finding that executive comments and employee policies violated workers’ rights shows how individual employee cases can feed into broader labor-law scrutiny of company policies.
If employee complaints continue to move from internal activism to NLRB cases, large employers face more pressure to align workplace rules and settlement practices with protected organizing rights.
The trend: Employee-led workplace campaigns are increasingly using labor-law complaints to turn internal disputes into scrutiny of company-wide policies.
@IfeomaOzoma 💯 accountability culture is a culture of care. Accountability is how we grow and express empathy — I can't imagine a healthy workplace without it.
.@cherthedev — who helped lead the #AppleToo movement — is leaving Apple after reaching a settlement. She'll retract her complaints to the national labor board and her last day is on Friday. https://www.bloomberg.com/...
i'm dismayed but not surprised that the settlement conditions included withdrawing an NLRB complaint. i 100% support @cherthedev doing whatever she needed to get out. i just hope people see apple's anti-worker-organizing tactics for what they are. https://www.bloomberg.com/...
“From Retail to AppleCare to corporate, we gave folks the power of information to confidently advocate for themselves. I believe it is fundamentally important that we continue to educate everyone on the line btw what is secret & what employees have a legal right to discuss.” 3/
New w/ @markgurman: #AppleToo leader @cherthedev has reached a settlement with Apple and is withdrawing a labor board charge and leaving the company https://www.bloomberg.com/... “We hope the crucial organizing work at Apple will continue,” her lawyer @AlekFelstiner says.
“The support from so many of you has kept me held to my integrity, & when I felt at my lowest, I got back up because of that support. I sincerely look forward to going back to being just a customer, surprised & delighted with the great things you all will continue to create.” 4/4
@JannekeParrish Thank you Janneke. Solidarity and thank you for all of the work you've done, and continue to do, in spite of everything you've been through.
@cherthedev This was my experience. I have loved maps and mapping since I was a kid, and I loved building a map. My experience at Apple soured me on tech and on maps. I'm still struggling with the idea that Apple does not represent “everywhere,” that it does get better.
Last night I was thinking about how many employees give up on the idea of a healthy workplace, resigning to the idea “this is everywhere.” They lose pride in the work they've done, and become ashamed of the brands. Bobby Kotick refusing to step down is a clear example of why.
Cher's final words, posted by a colleague in the remote-work-advocacy Slack channel: “Friday is my last day at Apple. I never dreamed I'd work here, and when I got here, I thought this was where I'd retire.” 1/
@cherthedev I feel this hard. Not only did I do work I'm proud of, I was the public face of it. It's part of what kept me quiet for so long. I believe that, ultimately, accountability is a form of love and it's the people who truly care about the work/product who push to make thi…
Interesting to see that a common sentiment amongst Apple employees at every level is joy and celebration when someone leaves the company; not in a bad way, but more along the lines of seeing someone they care about escape an abusive relationship