Ashley Gjovik, a former Apple project manager was fired in September after speaking out against workplace safety concerns in the company, according to a report by Truthout.

Gjovik filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in October, accusing the tech giant of unfair labor practices, including illegal spying in a manner that prevents them from their right to discuss working conditions.

Citing the company handbook, Gjovik says that Apple reserves the right to search employees' "work equipment", as well as their personal devices “to protect Apple confidential and sensitive information.” The company defines its proprietary information to include “compensation, training, recruiting, and other human resource information.”

Under US federal labor law, all employees reserve the right to discuss their working conditions, and management cannot surveil employees exercising their normal rights.

Apple site contaminated by industrial waste

Another complaint by Gjovik claims that Apple violated the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) by retaliating against her whistleblowing on workplace safety. According to her, Apple's office building in Sunnyvale, California, is built on top of an area contaminated by hazardous industrial waste.

The site was supposed to have been cleaned up and contained if humans were in the vicinity, which Apple has not done, according to her. 

The Department ruled this week that Gjovik's complaints had merit and will be investigated by the agency's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Gjovik was meticulous in documenting her experience on her personal website, where she discusses her conflict with Apple's management and her illness as a result of working in the Sunnyvale office.