Foxconn workers, activists claim no change at Apple plants following FLA audits
We reported earlier this month that Foxconn announced it would share the initial costs of improving iPhone and iPad assembly plants with Apple following an agreement to improve working conditions based on recommendations from the Fair Labor Association. Today, according to a report from Reuters, labor watchdog Student & Scholars Against Corporate Misbehaviour released a report claiming Foxconn factories have not changed much since the FLA’s audits:
A fresh report released on Thursday by labor watchdog Student & Scholars Against Corporate Misbehaviour (SACOM), based on visits to several Foxconn factories and 170 worker interviews, found rights violations “remain the norm” including high production targets, inhumane treatment and signs of overall salary cuts.
“The frontline management continue to impose humiliating disciplinary measures on workers,” it said.
“The above findings demonstrate that Apple and Foxconn have not turned over a new leaf,” the report added.
Even after recently raising wages of some workers by 16 to 25 percent, Reuters’ report claimed average overall salaries decreased and some “had to work unpaid overtime after pay hikes.” A Foxconn worker in Guanlan told Reuters: “The work pressure is still great… There hasn’t been much change. We are still being pushed very hard.”
Foxconn responded to the SACOM report in a statement to Reuters:
“The welfare of our employees is without a doubt our top priority and we are working hard to give our more than one million employees in China a safe and positive working environment,”
