Apple grants select employees free time to work on ‘personal’ projects

Apple (AAPL) CEO Tim Cook is taking a page out of the Google (GOOG) playbook and is granting select employees two-week breaks to work on outside and independent projects, according to The Wall Street Journal. The initiative, known as “Blue Sky,” is aimed at boosting employee morale and keeping workers loyal to Apple. Google and other Silicon Valley companies have employed similar programs that allow employees to spend a certain amount of their time working on side projects, which in the past have resulted in GMail and other popular Google services. The Wall Street Journal notes that Apple’s program is a “far cry” compared to others, however, especially with the number of employees participating in it. Blue Sky, which is believed to have been started earlier this year, is another example of Cook’s influence at Apple and its transition into a traditional tech company.