Hello everyone!
We have some unfortunate news. @fastmail has made the decision to lay off 60% of our bargaining unit, including our bargaining committee, in a surprise restructure while we were in the middle of contract negotiations. Fortunately, we were able to negotiate for a much better severance package than we would have gotten had we not unionized when we did. We are grateful for the work that the Communication Workers of America put in on our behalf to get us the best deal they could.
TLDR; EPA discovered that Apple was:
- illegally treating hazardous waste
- illegally transporting hazardous waste to disposal facilities
- illegally dumping hazardous waste into the ambient air outside the facility (into the apartment windows)
- leaving stockpiles of extremely dangerous chemicals unattended on weekends
The inspection was supposed to be unannounced so EPA surprises the inspected party who has no chance to cover up issues before EPA gets inside. However city HazMat tipped off Apple & EPA was greeted by Apple's EH&S team. Note: what EPA found was AFTER Apple had time to clean up.
After discovering what Apple did, I then spent three months requesting records & digging through regulatory filings to learn more - which led me to file a complaint to US EPA in June 2023. I met with EPA's investigators & sent them everything I discovered.
I told EPA I didn't want my whistleblowing to be anonymous, and instead, that if EPA shows up to inspect the plant, when they do, please have the EPA cops tell Apple: "Ashley says hi." 💀
US EPA Enforcement & Compliance conducted 3 onsite inspections of Apple's fab facility in 8/2023 + 1/2024. US EPA noted at least *19* potential violations of the RCRA hazardous waste statute.
I just posted US EPA's report for public access. Dropbox link: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/312oqvretg7yyhfx0ohx4/AGZduVXs0_1geqIyi0NA9nE?rlkey=3aa2tw15ek3trqlbdh7pw9erh&st=e7pg1cpp&dl=0
🧵 In 2020, I nearly died from mysterious industrial chemical exposure at my apartment. Later, in 2023, I discovered my employer was dumping toxic waste into the apartment windows from their Skunkworks semiconductor fab next-door. I tipped off the US EPA, who sent their env cops to raid Apple's plant in Aug of 2023. The US EPA finally released the report of their enforcement inspections & sent me a copy on Friday. 💀 ⬇️
uuuuu i really have to write that blog post or make that youtube video don't i. there's just… so much misunderstanding about this topic because most people haven't been cramming their head full of knowledge about obsolete standards for the last year and a half of their life
the worst thing is that Microsoft themselves have made a somewhat better synth: DirectMusic (part of DirectX). i don't know why they made the default Windows synth suck and only use the better one in games. maybe it was too much for an average 1996 office PC.
Trans woman, bisexual, someone's fiancée, forever a programmer, poly, and former total mess