Apple Employees Split on the Decision to Fire Executives Over ViralTikTok: WSJ

• Apple employees appear to be having mixed reactions to the resignation of Tony Blevins, an ex-executive. 
• In response to his rash comments in a TikTok viral, the tech giant terminated Blevins. 
• Former colleagues claimed to the WSJ that they have never seen unprofessional or sexist behavior from Blevins while working with them. 

Months later, former Apple executive Tony Blevins was fired in September for making crass remarksIn a TikTok viral post, his coworkers and fellow employees at tech giant appear to have mixed feelings about his termination. 

Blevins employees who have previously worked with Blevins told the Wall Street JournalA recent story revealed that they had not witnessed any sexist or unprofessional behavior. Blevins also noted that he sometimes used comedy to calm down heated moments. According to the Journal, Blevins was a vice president of Apple’s procurement for 22 years and was highly respected for his negotiation skills and ability to keep costs down. 

Blevins’ demise was due to a 25-second video. The question is posed to the former executive about his job while he leaves his Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren luxury car, which has a price tag in excess of $500,000.

Blevins replies, “I have rich cars and play golf, but I take weekends off,” Blevins later claimed, in a reference to the 1981 film, “Arthur.”

Daniel Mac posted the video as part a series asking people with expensive cars about their career. The video has been viewed more than 2 million times. Blevins was also notified about the video by Apple’s human resources department. 

Blevins stated to the Journal that he spent all night trying to contact MacApple contacted Blevins at 1:30 a.m. to request that he remove the video from TikTok. Blevins claims that he was told by an executive that “this is really terrible, some people have complained.” 

Blevins was eventually asked to resign. He refused and was fired in September. 

He said that it “utterly shocked” him. “Apple has been my whole life. I tried my best to be loyal.”

Some staff members were surprised at his dismissal, but others told the Journal that it was important to enforce inclusion at Apple and prevent discrimination. 

“Leaders must embody Apple’s principles,” Chris Deaver (a former senior human resources official at Apple), told WSJ. 

Apple’s decision has sparked widespread debate among those who are interested. found the firing to be extreme, and others — including etiquette experts who formerly spoke to Insider — who say it’s “never appropriate” to make such comments. 

Insider was told by Diane Gottsman, an expert in etiquette and founder of The Protocol School of Texas, that “we all know the old saying ‘loose lips sink ship’.” “It’s not appropriate to make a condescending statement. Even if it’s a riff off a movie, it’s still not appropriate — it’s offensive, it’s dismissive, and it’s demeaning.”

After he was fired, company executives still planned a going-away party for him — a move Blevins told the Journal he felt was “hypocritical” after firing him. It was cancelled in the end.

Blevins stated, “It was 22 Years dissolved in approximately 25 seconds.”