Filed under: Hardware, iPod Family, Apple
iPod factory admits to violating Chinese labor laws
Sounds like things might not be so squeaky clean in the "iPod City" after all, as Engadget has dug up some dirt on the Foxconn factory's admission of breaching Chinese labor laws. Specifically, Foxconn has admitted their employees work about 80 extra hours each month - which is a tad above and beyond the 36 extra hours that Chinese law allows for. To make matters worse though, Apple launched an investigation into the factory once this issue broke, "but has found no problem with Foxconn", to quote a factory spokeswoman from the ChinaCSR.com report. Here's hoping Apple is delving a bit deeper into the matter beyond what is likely a preemptive quote from a spokesperson eager for the issue to simply go away.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Joseph Matt said 3:01PM on 6-27-2006
As many have said before, such investigations are a crap shoot. Many times these tours are staged in other warehouses to make everything look a-okey, but infact their products are not being assembled there, and if any employees let it out to that fact, they usually get more than just terminated, possibly tortured too.
Doesn't help that China doesn't enforce anything against this too.
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zhonghuarising said 8:57PM on 6-27-2006
Yeah, this doesn't bode well for Apple. It seems that this story isn't going to go away quietly (nor should it). They need to come out with just the right response now.
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Jedediah Johnson said 10:52PM on 6-27-2006
Man. Its really really sad. Sometimes I wonder if Jobs could be happy with all the money he has when he is faced with true stories like this. I don't think I could be. My guilt be to great.
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jc said 10:58AM on 6-28-2006
it's impossible to say.... ChinaCSR isn't a widely recognized, credible news source, and their quality of reporting doesn't help their case - no sources quoted, for instance, among other problems.
This entire story is starting to smell a little of Yellow Journalism, really.
Not to say there's not a problem, or that abuses haven't happened or aren't happening. But the so-called journalists reporting these have not lived up to the responsibilities laden upon them for accuracy and fairness.
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Chris S said 2:22AM on 7-05-2006
I live in China and can say categorically that noone pays any attention to Chinese labour laws anyway. I don't know what teh factory is like as i have never been there but i have been to many like it. The Chinese managers will make sure everything looks perfect for apple when they visit and then carry on as before breaking the law without apple's knowledge.
China's labour laws are weak and rarely enforced, even in Beijing, many labourers working on government projects for the Olympics have not been paid for months.
But look at it this way. Working overtime and getting paid a tiny wage is still a hell of a lot better than what was happening 20 years ago for the people of China- this country really is unrecognisable today compared to 20 years ago and people have much better lives.
It is up to the Chinese government to implement and enforce better labour laws- something that they are now doing.
Now... China is a pretty cool place- except for one thing- you can't find a decent apple shop anywhere and we get all the rubbish models. ;-(
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