Short, easy test but
employees receive less
than 24 hours training
– like Apple claims they
get
Very demanding training staff, a
lot of ordering around:
‘you get lost, you’re in trouble’
‘if you don’t do what the
company asks you to do,
what’s the point of employing
you?’
Living conditions
Dormitories on site
for workers
18,000 eat, sleep and work there
‘city whose population lives to serve Apple’
“...no more than eight
individuals shall occupy
one dormitory sleeping
room”, but cases of up
to twelve people in one
room uncovered by
Panorama
Recruitment/Pay
Paychecks disguised
overtime as bonuses
14 workers (for Foxconn)
committed suicide,
resulting in the installation
of anti-suicide nets
Another one of Apple’s producers,
Pegatron, was supposed to have
higher living standards, but critical
reports were published - insisting
that Apple would’ve known about it.
However, almost no improvement
was made, even after the report
was published
ID taken from citizens at
recruitment offices, meaning they
are legally required to follow as
they cannot be without their ID
Confiscation breeches the employment
standards set out by Apple, and people
don’t get them back until they’re on factory
site, meaning they are unable to leave
Working conditions
Workers actually falling
asleep at their posts
“their conditions of work
are totally and physically
intolerable”; Ralph Nader –
Former US Presidential
Candidate
While
standing/operating
machinery
People falling asleep on
their breaks, and even
sometimes when they
should be working
Some areas of work had
barely any people awake
Evidence of employees being forced
to work 12-16 hour shifts, despite
Apple’s employee standards stating
-“all overtime must be voluntary”
Again despite Apple’s standards, there was further
evidence of under 18’s working unsuitable hours –
“...juvenile workers shall not conduct night work”
Environmental
impacts:
Tin Mines - Banka, Indonesia
30% of the world’s
tin comes from
here – but not all
legal sources
workers concerned about
landslides as they’re a constant
threat
Many children actually
make up the workforce
Tin from the illegal
sources investigated, are
suppliers to Apple
On land, whole areas of forest
ripped away to reach ore
Positive impacts?
Families in poverty have
potential to be helped as
their children can go off to
work in the factories -
potentially better than a
primary sector job ie.
subsistence farming
With Apple being a
big brand name,
there is an element of
status symbol, to be
working for such a
substantial company
Apple’s response to
negative claims
After 2010 Foxconn incidents, Apple
set out a ‘Standards Plan’ - spelling out
how employees should be treated
Claims they will investigate Panorama’s findings,
including sleeping during production, the issue of ID
confiscation, the widespread abuse of migrant workers
and working with suppliers to prevent excess overtime
They say they investigate
every claim brought to them
It goes “... deep into its supply chain to enforce
standards” – ie. Where it sources its tin from, yet
Panorama uncovered it within a few days, showing
that not all their claims are accurate
Their reply to employees falling
asleep at work - “Naps on
breaks are not unusual”
The issue with employee sleeping
arrangements – “Dormitory
situation now sorted”
Is Panorama one sided /
biased / unreliable?
While apple could try harder, it is often not
possible to tell exactly where everything is
sourced from, ie. The tin smelters themselves
do not always know the legality of their raw
material, even if apple does source its tin from
most smelters in the area
Vast workforce makes it very difficult
to ensure excellent working
standards for every single person
It can be argued that every developing country
has to go through these stages in order for
things to be better for the next generations (ie.
The Rostow and Demographic Transition
Models)