Dive Brief:

• Carol Monkowski, Apple Inc.’s senior director of store operations, was deposed recently by plaintiffs in a lawsuit over requirements that store employees get bags checked whenever they leave the store, and that asks for compensation for their time, among other demands.

• The bag check policy is an unwritten rule, is not enforced by Apple, and is therefore handled differently from store to store, Monkowski said.

• Monkowski’s most interesting contention was that, despite all that expensive merchandise, customer service vastly overshadows store theft as a company concern, and that Apple expects store employees to devise their own anti-theft procedures.

Dive Insight:

Monkowski’s testimony that Apple store theft is "not a priority" for the company is part of a unique insight into Apple stores operations that could probably only come from something like a legal deposition. The case recalls one by Amazon warehouse employees who have sued the company for uncompensated time spent waiting around for anti-theft checks. In that case, Amazon is arguing that the time is not integral to the job and therefore not covered under the Fair Labor Relations Act. Here, Apple seems to be saying that every Apple store is in charge of creating its own employee anti-theft policies, that bag checks are not official company policy, and that, anyway, the company is more concerned that talented employees are providing excellent customer service than with whether or not they take an iPhone here and there. It’s an interesting tack and one to watch.