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Apple releases 2013 supplier responsibility report
Apple's annual supplier responsibility report has proved to be a key insight into the company's labor practices, especially as scrutiny over working conditions in its supply chain grows. The 2013 report, quietly released Thursday night, gives insight into how the company is dealing with issues such as underage workers and excessive work hours. Highlights in the report include a 72 percent increase in audits over 2011. Apple conducted 229 audits in 2011 and 393 in 2012. Of those, 55 audits focused on environment, 40 on specialized safety processes and 27 on bonded labor. Apple also says that 92 percent of its suppliers now comply with a 60-hour work week. It also discussed the company joining the Fair Labor Association and the subsequent independent audit Apple asked it to conduct. Suppliers were also made to reimburse US$6.4 million in excessive foreign contract worker fees. As noted by AllThingsD, Apple also discovered a case where 74 underage workers were employed by a supplier that produced circuit boards. Apple severed the relationship with the supplier and turned the hiring agency that had forged documents for the workers over to the government.
Improvements at Foxconn's China factory
Foxconn has been under the microscope due to excessive overtime and poor working conditions at its Chinese production facilities. A report in the New York Times suggests the company is making changes that'll improve the workplace for its 1.4 million employees in China. These improvements include less overtime, pay increases and improved working conditions. The report chronicles Pu Xiaolan, a migrant worker from Sichuan province who has benefitted from Foxconn's worker-friendlier policies. She previously had a chair to helps her with her work inspecting iPad cases, but it didn't have back support. She would end her shift so sore that she had difficulty sleeping. Pu says she now has a wooden chair with a high, sturdy back that eases the strain on her back. She has even heard of some employees getting chairs with cushions. Apple's influence on Foxconn and its increasingly prominent role in worker's rights is also highlighted in the New York Times article. Human rights groups hope the Cupertino company will continue to focus on improving conditions for factory workers overseas. Many believe Apple has the public stature to initiate major changes in the way assembly workers are treated in the workplace. These improvements would not be limited to Foxconn, they could ripple throughout the entire electronics manufacturing industry. You can read the full article about Apple, Foxconn and working conditions on the New York Times' website.
Daily Update for August 22, 2012
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
Fair Labor Association reports on Apple, Foxconn progress
The Fair Labor Association, a "collaborative effort of universities, civil society organizations and socially responsible companies dedicated to protecting workers' rights around the world," has been working with Apple on audits and recommendations to keep workers at supplier Foxconn's plants safe and happy. The FLA issued a report yesterday showing significant progress towards creating a better working environment for Foxconn employees. Apple joined the FLA in January of 2012 after reports of hostile working conditions and worker suicides at Foxconn plants. The findings published in the FLA report show that all 195 actions that were due during April and May were completed. Foxconn also completed 89 action items ahead of their deadlines, with 76 items remaining on the list of actions to be completed over the next year. Probably the best news was that Foxconn has made significant progress towards bringing its factories into compliance with Chinese legal limits on working hours, reducing hours to under 60 per week (with overtime). The goal? To reach full compliance of the legal limit of 40 hours per week plus an average of 9 hours of overtime, while making sure that workers are still compensated fairly. The text of the full statement of the FLA follows. Show full PR text WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Fair Labor Association today published a status report verifying implementation of action items after assessments conducted by the FLA at three facilities of Apple's largest supplier, Foxconn. This verification reviewed items slated for April and May, finding that Foxconn has completed all of the 195 actions that were due. In addition, 89 action items were completed ahead of their deadlines. The remaining 76 items are due over the course of the next year. In February and March 2012, FLA conducted a full body scan to establish a baseline of working conditions and compliance with labor laws at three Foxconn facilities in one of the most comprehensive and detailed assessments in the history of manufacturing. Apple and Foxconn accepted the FLA's findings and recommendations and created a robust 15-month action plan with defined target dates of completion. Independent investigators engaged by FLA returned to each of the facilities from June 25 to July 6, 2012, to verify completion of the action items due. Apple was the first electronics company to join the FLA, a coalition of universities, non-governmental organizations and businesses committed to improving the well-being, safety, fair treatment, and respect of workers, in January of 2012. "Our verification shows that the necessary changes, including immediate health and safety measures, have been made. We are satisfied that Apple has done its due diligence thus far to hold Foxconn accountable for complying with the action plan, including the commitment to reform its internship program," said Auret van Heerden, President and CEO of the Fair Labor Association. "When we finished our initial investigation in March, Foxconn promised to address concerns with its internship program by ensuring that student interns do not work overtime, their work has a more direct connection to their field of study, and they understand that they are free to terminate the internship if and when they wish." FLA also found that Foxconn took steps to bring its factories into full compliance with Chinese legal limits on working hours by July 2013. Foxconn has already reduced hours to under 60 per week (including overtime) with the goal of reaching full compliance with the Chinese legal limit of 40 hours per week plus an average of 9 hours of overtime per week while protecting worker compensation. This commitment was one of the most significant to flow from the assessments. "The next phase of improvements will be challenging for Foxconn because they involve major changes in the working environment that will inevitably cause uncertainty and anxiety among workers. As Foxconn prepares to comply with the Chinese legal limits on work hours, consultation with workers on the changes and implications will be critical to a successful transition," said van Heerden. FLA's verification found that many physical changes to improve worker health and safety were made during this period, 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. Foxconn helped to extend unemployment insurance coverage for migrant workers working in Shenzhen by advocating for legislation that will allow them to access the unemployment insurance scheme, effective January 1, 2013. This change has implications not only for those employed at Foxconn, but for all other migrant workers in Shenzhen. "The verification confirmed that Apple and Foxconn are ahead of schedule in improving the conditions under which some of the world's most popular electronics are being made," said van Heerden. "Apple and Foxconn's progress since the March assessment, combined with the additional actions planned through July 2013, would create the roadmap for all Chinese suppliers in the tech industry." Detailed status updates on each item from the action plans for the three factories can be found at http://www.fairlabor.org/report/foxconn-remediation-verification. FLA will continue to conduct verification assessments of the progress at the three Foxconn factories over the next year and will report results at www.fairlabor.org. ###
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.
Will TUAW skip its Talkcast tonight?
We meet again, Sunday. At least this one has been mildly entertaining in some respects (for example, the trimumphant return of the Apple Store Playset to ThinkGeek's front page and TUAW's honoring of Betteridge's Law for the day). While fun, it is not a joke that we'll be firing up the Talkcast starting at 7PM Pacific time, 10pm Eastern. We'll discuss App Stores for Mac OS and iOS; specifically the high points and low points of each. We'll also spend a bit of time on the Fair Labor Association report released this week. As usual, Kelly's hosting the show means there will be aftershow. Unlike the cake, the aftershow is NOT a lie. (Sometimes the aftershow has cake discussion as well, but that's another story.) Since it's really all about you, the community, join me won't you? To participate, you can use the browser-only Talkshoe client, the embedded Facebook app, or download the classic TalkShoe Pro Java client; however, for +5 Interactivity, you should call in. For the web UI, just click the Talkshoe Web button on our profile page at 4 HI/7 PDT/10 pm EDT Sunday. To call in on regular phone or VoIP lines (Viva free weekend minutes!): dial (724) 444-7444 and enter our talkcast ID, 45077 -- during the call, you can request to talk by keying in *8. If you've got a headset or microphone handy on your Mac, you can connect via the free X-Lite or other SIP clients (aside from Skype or Google Voice), basic instructions are here. (If you prefer Blink, the pro version is available in the Mac App Store.) Talk to you tonight!
Daily Update for March 30, 2012
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
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.
Foxconn to hire safety, lifestyle pros at Apple factory
Life appears to be getting better for the thousands of workers who build our favorite Apple devices in China. Foxconn, the company that builds iPhones and iPads for Apple, is now hiring for several positions that are related to oversight of safety and lifestyle issues at its facilities. According to a Bloomberg article posted a few days ago, Foxconn has advertised for a safety and security officer, a lifestyle services manager, and two fire chiefs at a plant in Shenzhen, China. The lifestyle services manager is tasked with making sure that conditions at Foxconn dormitories, canteens, and health departments are up to par. Foxconn not only makes products for Apple, but for Dell, HP, Microsoft, and Sony. The company has opened up its factories to inspectors from the Fair Labor Association under pressure from Apple, and in February raised the base pay for starting workers by up to 25 percent.
Apple's China audits don't inspire the same from other companies
As TUAW has reported previously, Apple is working with the Fair Labor Association on a study of working conditions at supplier factories. The independent audits are attempting to determine areas where workers may be exposed to poor or dangerous working or living conditions so that changes can be made for the sake of the workers. Those audits have begun, but according to a Bloomberg article this morning, Apple's peers in the consumer electronics industry don't seem to be following suit. The Bloomberg post notes that "companies including Microsoft Corp., Dell Inc., Hewlett-Packard Co. and Samsung Electronics Co. rely on their own evaluations, based in part on guidelines from the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC), which they say are sufficient to prevent abuses." However, "while the EICC sets standards for ethics, worker safety and labor practices, it doesn't require members to disclose findings and it lacks enforcement powers. The result is a disjointed system of self- imposed regulations that fail to hold companies accountable when abuses arise, according to labor advocates and technology executives." Apple has been receiving a lot of attention from the press and worker's rights groups, who are targeting the company with petitions, protests, and threats of boycotts. It appears that most of the other players in the business are able to get away with equally bad (or worse) working and environmental conditions without any comment. As The Loop's Peter Cohen notes, "Where's the outrage from citizen's groups and environmental groups?" The biggest target is always the easiest to hit, so hopefully these groups will begin to focus their attention on the other electronics firms now that they've managed to get Apple to keep an eye on suppliers.
ABC's Nightline goes inside Foxconn's Apple factory (video)
Nightline's Bill Weir managed to get his feet inside manufacturing behemoth Foxconn: the infamous plant where iPads, Xboxes and Kindles are constructed. Following multiple explosions and employee suicides, the factory is being inspected by the Fair Labor Association to examine working conditions exposed by the efforts of journalists like Liu Zhiyi. In the show, we learn that on a quiet day, 3,000 prospective employees will linger outside the factory in the hope of earning just $1.78 an hour. Weir himself manages to coax the concession from company advisor Louis Woo that the multiple tragedies were a belated catalyst for change in the company's working conditions. The full special will air on ABC tomorrow but we've got a sneak peek for you after the break.
Daily Update for February 15, 2012
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen.
Fair Labor Association: iPad plant conditions "better than the norm"
While protesters are targeting the Chinese Foxconn plants that make iPads and iPhones, the first report from the Fair Labor Association (FLA) indicates that they may want to start focusing their attention on other manufacturing plants. The comments were made in a Reuters article today highlighting an interview with the FLA's president. As we've reported here on TUAW, the FLA has begun a study of working conditions at plants operated by Apple's top eight Chinese suppliers. FLA president Auret van Heerden noted after his initial visits to Foxconn plants that "The facilities are first-class; the physical conditions are way, way above average of the norm." Although the study is just beginning and will also cover other Apple suppliers like Quanta Computer, Pegatron, and Wintek, van Heerden commented that "I was very surprised when I walked onto the floor at Foxconn, how tranquil it is compared with a garment factory. So the problems are not the intensity and burnout and pressure-cooker environment you have in a garment factory ... it's more a function of monotony, of boredom, of alienation perhaps." Van Heerden noted that Apple is serious about changing the conditions in which workers build its products. "If Apple wanted to take the easy way out there were a whole host of options available to them. The fact that they joined the FLA shows they were really serious about raising their game." About 35,000 workers will be interviewed anonymously, entering their responses onto iPads. Questions will ask about the hiring practices of the Apple contractor, conditions of dorm rooms and quality of food, whether complaints are acted upon, and the emotional well-being of the workers. An interim report will be made public in March, and the final FLA report will identify the areas where the suppliers need to make improvements. The FLA was originally created in the early 1990s to try to improve working conditions in Chinese garment factories. The FLA has come under fire by some groups as being a pawn of the garment industry, although others say that the FLA has been effective in helping workers. How the group's recommendations will affect the workers who produce Apple products remains to be seen.
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.
