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What It's Like To Work Inside Apple's 'Black Site' (bloomberg.com)
An anonymous reader shares an excerpt from a Bloomberg report: Apple's new campus in Cupertino, California, is a symbol of how the company views itself as an employer: simultaneously inspiring its workers with its magnificent scale while coddling them with its four-story cafe and 100,000-square-foot fitness center. But one group of Apple contractors finds another building, six miles away on Hammerwood Avenue in Sunnyvale, to be a more apt symbol. This building is as bland as the main Apple campus is striking. From the outside, there appears to be a reception area, but it's unstaffed, which makes sense given that people working in this satellite office -- mostly employees of Apple contractors working on Apple Maps -- use the back door. Workers say managers instructed them to walk several blocks away before calling for a ride home. Several people who worked here say it's widely referred to within Apple as a "black site," as in a covert ops facility.
Inside the building, say former workers, they came to expect the vending machines to be understocked, and to have to wait in line to use the men's bathrooms. Architectural surprise and delight wasn't a priority here; after all, the contract workers at Hammerwood almost all leave after their assignments of 12 to 15 months are up. It's not uncommon for workers not to make it that long. According to 14 current and former contractors employed by Apex Systems, a firm that staffs the building as well as other Apple mapping offices, they operated under the constant threat of termination. "It was made pretty plain to us that we were at-will employees and they would fire us at any time," says one former Hammerwood contractor, who, like most of the workers interviewed for this story, spoke on condition of anonymity because he signed a nondisclosure agreement with Apex. "There was a culture of fear among the contractors which I got infected by and probably spread." Apex manages the workers it hires -- not Apple. "Following an inquiry from Bloomberg News, the company says, it conducted a surprise audit of the Hammerwood facility and found a work environment consistent with other Apple locations," reports Bloomberg.
"Like we do with other suppliers, we will work with Apex to review their management systems, including recruiting and termination protocols, to ensure the terms and conditions of employment are transparent and clearly communicated to workers in advance," an Apple spokesperson says in a statement.
Inside the building, say former workers, they came to expect the vending machines to be understocked, and to have to wait in line to use the men's bathrooms. Architectural surprise and delight wasn't a priority here; after all, the contract workers at Hammerwood almost all leave after their assignments of 12 to 15 months are up. It's not uncommon for workers not to make it that long. According to 14 current and former contractors employed by Apex Systems, a firm that staffs the building as well as other Apple mapping offices, they operated under the constant threat of termination. "It was made pretty plain to us that we were at-will employees and they would fire us at any time," says one former Hammerwood contractor, who, like most of the workers interviewed for this story, spoke on condition of anonymity because he signed a nondisclosure agreement with Apex. "There was a culture of fear among the contractors which I got infected by and probably spread." Apex manages the workers it hires -- not Apple. "Following an inquiry from Bloomberg News, the company says, it conducted a surprise audit of the Hammerwood facility and found a work environment consistent with other Apple locations," reports Bloomberg.
"Like we do with other suppliers, we will work with Apex to review their management systems, including recruiting and termination protocols, to ensure the terms and conditions of employment are transparent and clearly communicated to workers in advance," an Apple spokesperson says in a statement.
Along with other horrific Apple experiments.
- An Apple contractor has a building that isn't as spiffy as the main Apple HQ?
- Do Managers tell staff to walk a few blocks because it's in an area where it's difficult for taxis to get to?
- Contractors for Apple don't get treated the same as actual Apple staff?
The article makes it sounds like there's something nefarious or dodgy going on but doesn't provide any real detail.
Having worked as a consultant and contractor myself (not for Apple). It always bugs me how I was treated like a second hand employee. Yes, I got paid more then the normal employees, but that is to cover the risk of being dropped at any time, and for me to find new business.
Contractors are often hired to work on "Career ending" projects, where a failure would cost your job and reputation (However working via a consulting firm, the individual gets isolated, as the firm takes the blame, and then just gets their licensed renew after the problem settles down). These jobs are often very complex, where a lot of things can go wrong.
That all said, there is often animosity towards the contractors. Which makes working cross departments difficult in general difficult, and often being blocked from accessing the companies soft employee benefits, such as the cafeteria, or the gym, in essence all these features designed to help improve productivity and moral. Means the contractors now are further hindered because they can access features to help improve their productivity and moral. Because being charged $250 an hour, you don't want to be caught at the Ping-Pong table, getting some exercise while you are thinking about how to solve the next problem.
Hearing that Apple Maps is primarily done by the contractors, I can see why it is a mess, not because of the lack of skill from these contractors, but because of the conditions they are working in. Granted what we hear isn't bad, but it is isolated from the Apple culture, so the Apple (lack of a better term) soul isn't there.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
I worked for apex on a Microsoft contract about a decade ago. They never tell you that the position is temporary. After 6 months, I remember other engineers mention that any tickets to the help desk may take longer, because they've all been replaced, "because apex does that sometimes to save costs". The help desk was also apex, so I thought was it suspicious, but didn't think much of it at the time, or that I might have the same fate. Anyways, at my 12 month mark, my badge didn't work to get into the building. I called my lead, and he escorted me in, thinking it was another mistake made to the physical security system. A few weeks prior, our site manager had been locked in a very small solid back room (which contained all the most expensive parts) for a few hours, as he was allowed access in, but not out (that would also be a fire safety issue). Anyways, so I worked half that day, until physical security said my access was removed and had to escort me out. My lead had no idea, told me to sit, and that security can wait, and was red in face pissed off. After he made a few calls, apparently there was a budget decision to hire replacements at half my pay($20\h to $10\h). Our project was almost complete with phase 1 (deployment), and phase 2 didn't need as much expertise(just maintenance). I got a better job, but wish I knew ahead of time
This follows the rule of equilibrium in thermodynamics. Always have something in contrast to even out the rest. It comes naturally, and is why I would rather go out kicking and screaming than work for big tech.
... assembling iPhones somewhere in WangTang where killing yourself seems to be an attractive option.
We suffer more in our imagination than in reality. - Seneca
At my company, contractors are treated more or less identically to full employees.
And that's how contractors win lawsuits to get full benefits.
Given the legal climate Apple is smart to take a hands-off approach to contractors and let conditions be totally managed by this other company,
I know most of them have been offered full time positions, but for whatever reason they prefer contract positions.
(A) This may be in violation of contracts they have signed with the contracting firm they are working through.
(B) Being a contractor in a large company is nice because you are more sheltered from political intrigue.
(C) You can often figure out how to give yourself equivalent benefits company workers get for less than they are paying, combine that with a higher contractor salary and converting to an employee can mean quite an earnings hit.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley