Apple employees keep walking into glass at the new Apple Park campus

Credit: Justin Sullivan

Credit: Justin Sullivan

The glass walls surrounding Apple's new Apple Park campus in Cupertino, California, are so clear that employees are actually smacking into them and hurting themselves.

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According to MarketWatch, the company has even had to call emergency services to help multiple employees, some of whom suffered minor cuts to the head.

"While the issue might seem humorous, there are workplace regulations that Apple could be violating," the site noted. For example, California labor code states that employees should be protected "against the hazard of walking through glass by barriers or by conspicuous durable markings."

The new Apple headquarters features 45-foot-tall and curved panels of safety glass. According to Time, some staffers started to stick Post-It notes on the glass doors but were asked to remove them because “they detracted from the building’s design.” Another person familiar with the situation told Time there are other markings on the panels to identify the glass.

If the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration finds Apple has violated the law, the company could be subjected to fines, a spokeswoman from the California Department of Industrial Relations said.

According to the Verge, this wouldn't be the first time the company got in trouble for putting its "architectural vision before prioritizing safety." In 2012, an 83-year-old woman sued Apple after walking into a clear door at an Apple Store and breaking her nose.
Built by famed architect Norman Foster, the building is designed to house about 13,000 employees.

Last year, Wired magazine called the structure a "statement of openness, of free movement." In 2011, Apple co-founder Steve Jobs called the vision "a little like a spaceship landed."

The new campus was slated to open last year, but several employees began moving into the structure early this year.

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