Apple announced Thursday that it will permanently close three retail stores in the United States in June, and one of them is the store in Towson, Maryland, that became the first Apple retail location in the country to unionize. The IAM Union called the decision "outrageous" and said it is exploring all legal options. [1] [2]

The Towson Town Center store, where workers voted to join the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers in June 2022, will shut its doors on June 11. Apple cited the departure of several retailers from the struggling mall as the reason. The other two closing stores are in San Antonio, Texas, and Baton Rouge, Louisiana. [1] [3]

What makes the Towson closure politically charged is the timeline. Workers there fought for nearly two years to reach a contract with Apple, finally ratifying an agreement in August 2024 that included higher pay, improved scheduling rights, and protections against arbitrary discipline. That contract, according to the union, includes provisions that should prevent this exact outcome. [2] [4]

The union's core grievance is about what happens to the workers. Apple told employees they cannot transfer to other stores and must instead reapply as external candidates. For a unionized workforce that spent years organizing and bargaining, this amounts to dissolution — the contract evaporates along with the store. [2]

"Apple's claim that the collective bargaining agreement prevents relocation is simply false and raises serious concerns that this closure is a retaliatory action against workers who exercised their legal right to organize," the AFL-CIO said in a statement supporting the IAM. [5]

Apple, for its part, maintains that the closures are purely a real estate decision. The company has 272 retail stores in the United States and periodically closes underperforming locations. Towson Town Center has lost anchor tenants in recent years, and foot traffic has declined. [1]

But the pattern is the story. Apple has faced organizing efforts at stores in Oklahoma City, New York, and elsewhere. Only Towson successfully ratified a contract. The store that proved the model could work is the one being closed. The two non-union stores closing alongside it provide Apple with the defense that this is routine portfolio management, not targeted retaliation.

Whether the closure survives legal challenge depends on whether the contract's terms or federal labor law offer protections against a store-level shutdown. The National Labor Relations Board has previously ruled on similar cases, generally holding that employers cannot close operations to punish union activity — but proving intent is difficult when a company can point to declining mall traffic.

The IAM has not yet filed a formal complaint but said it would act quickly. For now, 100 workers in Towson are counting the days until June 11.

-- THEO KAPLAN, San Francisco