Apple and Google Are Rerouting Their Employee Buses as Attacks Resume (mashable.com)

Slashdot reader sqorbit writes: Apple runs shuttle buses for it's employees in San Francisco. It seems someone who is not happy with Apple has decided to take out their anger on these buses. In an email obtained by Mashable, Apple states "Due to recent incidents of broken windows along the commute route, specifically on highway 280, we're re-routing coaches for the time being. This change in routes could mean an additional 30-45 minutes of commute time in each direction for some riders." It has been reported that at least four buses have had windows broken, some speculating that it might caused by rubber bullets.
"Around four years ago, people started attacking the shuttle buses that took Google employees to and from work, as a way of protesting the tech-company-driven gentrification taking place around San Francisco," remembers Fortune, adding "it seems to be happening again."

At least one Google bus was also attacked, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, which adds that the buses "were not marked with company logos, and the perpetrators are suspected of broadly targeting technology shuttle buses rather than a specific company."

Comments

Stories from a Company Town

[Anonymous Coward]

Never lived in SF, but I grew up somewhere a megacorp set up shop.

At first, everyone was really excited, because there were going to be all these jobs! Hooray! There were some construction jobs whilst it was being built; folks bought new houses, new trucks. It was pretty nice. Unfortunately when it was done, the only jobs that the locals were qualified for were janitorial, canteen and security. Not surprising; Rural Nowhere doesn't have a massive stock of biotech scientists and chemical engineers just sat waiting for a pharma plant to be built.

But at least the area was going to get rich off the taxes, right? Well, see, to get the plant, the state and municipality had cut a special deal for "innovating job creators", so the firm was basically getting paid to be here. 90% of property taxes go to the state, so even though property tax revenues would be higher, the local services wouldn't see much of it.

As people moved in from out of state (mostly existing employees of the company from plants they'd shut down, but some new hires), a few people in town made what they thought was a pretty penny selling property to them. Of course, the house prices in Nowhere were pretty low, so when they tried to use the money to buy elsewhere, they couldn't get as much house as they'd sold. When house prices started to rocket, rents got jacked up, and any locals who were renting was basically SOL. No way you could work at the gas station and pay rent on a one-bed apartment, so you'd better get real friendly with someone real fast or move back in with your folks.

The company knew they were sending their employees out to Nowhere, so they'd planned ahead. Subsidised employee daycare, canteen, gym, even a subsidised laundry and convenience store on site. Outside the fence, the local shops and services had to either compete with the subsidised prices or accept that most of the company folk weren't ever going to come in.

The local schools got swamped with new kids; rich and poor kids mixing there was about the only good thing to come out of it. Of course, there wasn't a lot of extra money to deal with it, and the huge wealth disparity definitely caused some problems. Suddenly parents were demanding more AP classes, more after-school clubs and activities and generally expecting higher standards. Some of that was good - I wouldn't have got where I am without it - but the budget-strapped school spending resources on activities that only a few could afford to do created a lot of tension. We had a new swimming pool and textbooks that were falling apart; of course company kids had shiny new ones their parents had ordered for them.

After ten years, the house prices had increased from about 25% below to 50% above the state average; about half the existing population had been forced out by rising property prices and rents, many local businesses had been empty for years due to the loss of trade and the competition from subsidised on-site businesses. I've just graduated with a relevant STEM degree (I actually got a small bursary from the company and the offer of an interview if I maintained a 3.5 GPA), and the company has decided to shut down the plant. They've come up with a new way to make the thing they were producing, and it's cheaper to build a new plant in a new town (with new tax breaks, of course) than to update their existing plant. So in a few months they will be gone, as will half of the town's population. Anyone who struggled to buy a house there or took out a second mortgage to exploit the rising value will be underwater, and we'll be left with really nice school and no kids to fill it, and thus no money to maintain it.

The company attached itself to our town like a parasite; they used the existing public infrastructure for their own benefit without without paying a dime. They broke the local economy, made it depend on them, and then cast it aside when it was no longer convenient, leaving behind a dying husk of what used to be a small but pleasant town. The worst part is that the best and brightest of the local kids are now working for the company, and excited to move to this new picturesque little town across the state where the new plant is being built... myself included.

As a San Francisco native...

[Anonymous Coward]

I was economically ejected from the place I grew up in and which I love the most in the world. So on behalf of all of us middle class folk who don't work for a mega IT corporation, fuck Apple, fuck Google, and fuck all the rest of the corporate slave masters too.

I and my children cannot live there because we were not born into walth, and in my chosen profession one must live like a slave if they stay in the SF bay, with horrendous commutes, insane living costs and crushing mortgages.

To all of you who have not suffered through poverty until forced out of the SF region, fuck you too. You do not understand why we are so enraged, and should shut up with your defense of these soulless corporate monsters. I earned good money, had a good career, and it wasn't enough to ever buy a home or have a comfortable life.

AAAARRRRGGGHHH! It pisses me off.