Apple staff in China work in 'deplorable' conditions
Staff making the iPad work 11-hour days, live in dirty quarters and face hazards in the workplace
Martin Hickman
Following stints with Reuters and the Press Association, Martin Hickman joined The Independent as a news editor in 2001. He became the Consumer Affairs Correspondent in September 2005 and has run the paper's trenchant campaigns on packaging, bank charges and factory-farmed chicken. He writes on subjects as diverse as food, finance, energy and fashion. With Tom Watson, he is author of a new book on the phone hacking scandal, Dial M for Murdoch - News Corporation and the Corruption of Britain.
Friday 29 June 2012
Related articles
Factory workers making Apple's gadgets lead worse lives than those at the militaristic Foxconn facility which was hit by a spate of worker suicides two years ago, according to a report published yesterday.
An investigation by China Labor Watch found that workers assembling the iPad and other best-selling products experienced "deplorable" conditions including a basic 11-hour day, excessive overtime, low wages, overcrowded and dirty dormitories and hazardous working conditions. Other problems comprised inadequate trade unions, excessive use of agency labour, poor food and routine cheating of overtime pay.
Apple admitted it had a human rights problem at its biggest Chinese supplier, Foxconn, in February when it launched an investigation by the Fair Labour Association following the suicide or attempted suicide of 13 Foxconn staff . In a report in March, the FLA found "serious and pressing" concerns over excessive working hours, unpaid overtime and health and safety failings, prompting Foxconn and Apple to promise they would end the abuses within a year. But according to China Labor Watch (CLW) – which investigated 10 Apple suppliers in Shenzhen, Shanghai and Jiangsu Province for the first four months of this year – abuses exist across Apple's Chinese suppliers and are worse at non-Foxconn factories.
. CLW's researchers visited factories undercover, interviewed workers and obtained questionnaires from 620 staff. It said workers could take off one day a month, but, sometimes during peak demand, they worked every day for several months. All the factories except Foxconn City made heavy use of short-term "despatched labour", whose pay and conditions were worse than contracted staff.
Apple, the world's biggest company, did not dispute CLW's findings. In an email to Reuters, Kristin Huguet, spokeswoman for the company wrote: "As part of our ongoing supplier responsibility program, our team has conducted thorough audits at every facility in China Labor Watch's report. In some places, our auditors found issues similar to those described by China Labor Watch, including overtime violations."
-
IoS exclusive: MI5 'tried to recruit' Woolwich attack suspect Michael Adebolajo
-
Fire and fury in Sweden as riots spread
-
EDL marches on Newcastle as attacks on Muslims increase tenfold in the wake of Woolwich machete attack which killed Drummer Lee Rigby
-
Fallen angel: Winona Ryder on bouncing back from her decade in the wilderness
-
Hurricane season fears as warning satellite fails
Get your summer started with British Military Fitness
BMF is the UK’s biggest and best loved outdoor fitness classes
Visit York
Find out what The Independent's resident travel expert has to say about one of the most beautiful small cities in the world
Making reading fun for kids
Nook is donating eReaders to volunteers at high-need schools and participating in exclusive events throughout the campaign.
Introducing the 'Get Reading' campaign
Get the latest on The Evening Standard's campaign to get London's children reading.
Enter the latest Independent competitions
Win anything from gadgets to five-star holidays on our competitions and offers page.
Business videos from commercial thought leaders
Watch the best in the business world give their insights into the world of business.
Independent Dating
Day In a Page
Andrew Mitchell: 'It's no good feeling hard done by'
Corruption and the FCO: Blue skies, white sands, dark clouds
Fallen angel: Winona Ryder bounces back
Patrick Cockburn: Civil war looms in Iraq
Conquering Everest: 60 facts about the world's tallest mountain
Killing with kindness: Burma's religious battleground






Comments