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Watch DARPA's tiny drone do 45 MPH indoors, autonomously
It's been a bit since we last saw DARPA's bird-of-prey inspired drone system, but the government's mad science wing hasn't been sitting idle. The Fast Lightweight Autonomy program recently took one of its drones on an indoor test flight where there little quadrocopter that could zoomed around a cluttered warehouse in a Cape Cod Air Force base at 45 MPH -- the target speed and environment the outfit was aiming for back in 2014.
Foxconn to allow union elections
For the first time ever, Foxconn is reportedly allowing its workers to elect union representatives. A Telegraph UK report says Foxconn will hold elections for a union chairman and 20 members of the Federation of Labour Unions Committee. Elections will take place every five years. Both Foxconn and Apple have been criticized for poor working conditions, excessive overtime and low pay in the Chinese manufacturer's factories. In response, Apple has started releasing regular Supplier Responsibility Progress Reports and has worked with the Fair Labor Association to improve Foxconn's work environment.
Fair Labor Association's Foxconn investigation notes improved factory conditions
Back in March, the Fair Labor Association issued the results of its investigation of Foxconn's Chinese plants, spurring a joint effort between Apple and the manufacturer to make working conditions better for employees. The non-profit has since followed up to investigate the fruits of the companies' promise, visiting three Foxconn facilities for a visual inspection of the factories and review of documentation like payroll records and policies. The FLA discovered a fair amount of progress being made on its visits, noting, Many physical changes to improve worker health and safety have been made since the investigation, including the enforcement of ergonomic breaks, changing the design of workers' equipment to guard against repetitive stress injuries, updating of maintenance policies to ensure equipment is working properly, and testing of emergency protective equipment like eyewashes and sprinklers. Foxconn has also engaged consultants to provide health and safety training for all employees. Also on the list is the election of unions, extension of insurance coverage and the reduction of the work week down to (a still over-the-limit) 60 hours. The organization has promised to continue to monitor progress as Foxconn and Apple work to meet all of its goals. Check out the source link below for a more complete look at the findings.
Foxconn reduces working hours, workers ask why
The Fair Labor Association released its first report about the conditions it found in Foxconn factories during a recent investigation. The report details over 50 violations that center on excessive overtime and low pay. To improve the working environment, Foxconn has vowed to slash overtime without decreasing workers compensation. This change, however, has Foxconn workers concerned says a Reuters report. Some employees are afraid less hours will translate into less money, a situation they don't want. "We are worried we will have less money to spend. Of course, if we work less overtime, it would mean less money," one 23-year-old employee told Reuters. Another worker said, "We have just been told that we can only work a maximum of 36 hours a month of overtime. I tell you, a lot of us are unhappy with this. We think that 60 hours of overtime a month would be reasonable and that 36 hours would be too little."
Fair Labor Association finds multiple violations at Foxconn facilities
The Fair Labor Association has announced the first results of its Foxconn investigation. The report documents more than 50 violations or policy gaps including excessive overtime, unpaid wages and low salaries that can't cover the workers' basic necessities. The results in this report came from a survey of workers in Foxconn's Chinese facilities earlier this year. Apple responded by saying, "We appreciate the work the FLA has done to assess conditions at Foxconn, and we fully support their recommendations. We think empowering workers and helping them understand their rights is essential." You can read the entire report at the FLA's website. [Via The Wall Street Journal]
Apple and Foxconn agree to drastically improve working conditions following Fair Labor Association report
The Fair Labor Association has released its findings from the lengthy investigation of working conditions at Foxconn's Chinese plants where Apple products are made. While the PR and report largely avoid over the top rhetoric and direct condemnations of the companies, they hardly paint a rosy picture. The watchdog found that in the last year all three factories violated not just FLA code for hours worked, but Chinese legal limits of 36 hours of overtime per month. During peak periods, employees worked more than 60 hours a week on average and many more than seven days in a row. But, to its credit, the group has extracted an agreement out of both Apple and Foxconn to drastically improve conditions at the factories.Foxconn has agreed to meet FLA and Chinese legal codes by July of 2013, including cutting the number of monthly overtime hours from 80 to 36. To compensate for the lost work hours the manufacturer will boost wages and plans to hire thousands of new workers to help maintain current production levels. A concerted effort is also planned to improve the safety and health conditions at the plants and their accompanying dormitories. The moves may be felt here in the US as small increases in the cost of electronic goods, but the price will be easy to swallow considering the weight it'll help lift off our conscience. Hit up the source link to read the full report for yourself and check out the PR after the break.
Factory workers claim Foxconn hid underage employees prior to inspection
No doubt you watched Nightline's special edition about Shenzhen's Foxconn factory where workers assemble iPhones, iPads and Macs. If you missed it, you can watch it online at ABC's website (US only). As we noted last night, the documentary showed a rather clean Foxconn factory filled with young, Chinese workers. Missing from the show, says Debby Sze Wan Chan of Students & Scholars Against Corporate Misbehavior (SACOM), were the underage workers who Foxconn hid during the Fair Labor Association (FLA) inspection. Speaking to AppleInsider, Chan said "All underage workers, between 16-17 years old, were not assigned any overtime work and some of them were even sent to other departments." She claims two workers in the Zhenghou plant told her Foxconn was "prepared for the inspection." A similar sentiment was expressed by FLA president Auret van Heerden who said he expects Foxconn to put on a show. Despite Foxconn's careful presentation, van Heerden asserts the FLA's bottom-up interviews could uncover any issues in the factory. It's worthy to note that Apple is a member of the FLA, paid US$250,000 to join the group and funded this latest round of inspections. Though Apple works with the FLA, Chan claims she has received a cold shoulder from the company. No one within Apple has responded to her requests; supposedly the company even refused to receive reports, documentaries and petition cards from her when she traveled to Apple's California headquarters. A security guard who escorted her out of the building at One Infinite Loop took the paperwork and promised to deliver the items to someone in charge, but she has not heard back from Apple. Speaking at a recent Goldman Sachs technology conference, Apple CEO Tim Cook told the audience that Apple is working to address underage labor, safety issues, and excessive overtime at its contract factories. Chan, though, doubts Apple has "any commitments to do so."
Apple opens up inspection of its Foxconn plants to Fair Labor Association
One of Apple's major manufacturing cogs, Foxconn, will receive voluntary audits from the Fair Labor Association on factories in both Shenzhen and Chengdu in China. These inspections already began earlier today over in "Foxconn City", where the FLA has started polling "thousands" of employees, covering both their working and living conditions. Facilities (including dormitories) will be inspected by the FLA, which will also sift through all the required employment documents, with its findings set to be published in March. In total, the assessment will cover more than 90 percent of Apple's assembly locations. It following its self-published supplier responsibility report and recent concern over its production methods and worker conditions. See how Apple breaks it down in its press release after the break.
