7 insane things about Apple's work culture, as told by former employees

Apple is one of the largest companies in the world and unsurprisingly one of the most sought after employers in the world.

But if you think it's all free iPads and Apple Watches, think again. Apple expects its employees to put their work above all else and have a strict code of secrecy that they must abide by.

Here's seven of the most insane things about Apple's work culture, as told by its former employees.

1. New interns receive a box containing the following hardcore message on their first day

(Via Christina Quan - Quora)

2. The rubbish bins are monitored

Tim Su, a software engineer that works for Yahoo, has spent some time at Apple HQ in the past and made the following observations with regards to their secrecy:

There were code names for every product . No one referred to products any other way
Team members who are also on "special" teams don't tell their coworkers what they do.
Black curtains and frosted windows
Trash bins were monitored.

3. Apple makes grammar and punctuation changes in its internal documents in order to track leaks.

After Business Insider obtained a couple of leaked memos from retail chief Angela Ahrendts, Apple began making changes to its internal communications to help it figure out where the leaks came from. It now sends differently worded memos to different sections of the company to make it easier to track leaks back to the source when memos are quoted in the media.

4. You are in the office every day unless you are sick or dead.

An annonymous source said that has described how it's never acceptable for employees to work from home. "The company culture wants everyone face to face every day and they are very up-front and clear about it. You are in the office every day unless you are sick or dead. Nobody watches what time you are in every day but telecommute is something they very vocally say is not and will not be part of the culture."

5. They will email you even if you're in hospital.

Ben Farrell, a former Apple employee detailed one of the main incidents that led to him quitting the company:

“In recent weeks I contracted a nasty incapacitating mosquito born virus and was hospitalised for a short time. However, rather than receiving support, I was emailed a presentation to my hospital bed with a note that it needed to be completed ‘urgently’. Even on the very morning of my wedding I was still being harassed by phone and email to send a report someone had lost.”

6. Apple's security policy extends to what you talk about with your spouse.

Justin Maxwell, a former Apple user interface designer, said:

"The measures that Apple takes to protect its creative and intellectual environment are unparalleled in the valley, and it's been a disappointing experience since leaving there. Apple's security policy extends to blogs, to speaking engagements, to what we talk about with our spouses. Most people get it and respect it. The ones who don't -- the ones who need to put Apple under their name so they can get a speaking gig at SxSW -- are kindly ushered to move on."

"If I was still at Apple, I would not be responding to this question, nor would I feel wronged for not being able to."

7. Apple used to sell this T-shirt at its HQ campus store.