Though Apple’s Supplier Responsibility Code of Conduct is
one of the best in the technology industry, it still is having problems in arranging
production of Apple products by companies that do not benefit
from the exploitation of workers by the violation of Chinese labor laws. This
is evident in Apple’s recent decision to contract Pegatron, a rapidly growing
Chinese company to produce iPhones, Apple computers and iPad parts. In response
to these new production demands from Apple, Pegatron has grown from a workforce
of approximately 50,000 in March to 70,000 workers today. (2,3).
The rapid growth at Pegatron has drawn the attention of
China Labor Watch (CLW), a labor watchdog group whose dedication to Chinese
worker’s rights and scrutiny of Chinese production methods has led to the
identification of many corporate
violations of labor rights. Most recently, from March to July of 2013, CLW investigators went undercover inside
Pegatron, and conducted approximately 200 interviews with workers outside of three
Pegatron plants (1).
CLW reports finding
86 labor rights violations, including 36 legal violations and 50 ethical
violations at these three Pegatron factories. Many of these violations are
inconsistent with Apple’s Supplier Code of Conduct (7). These violations were occurring
at the same time Apple claimed it’s suppliers have achieved 99 percent
compliance with it’s 60-hour workweek rule (the legal workweek limit in China
is 49 hours). However, CLW reports the average workweeks at the three factories
investigated are approximately, 66, 67 and 69 hours (1,3). Their finding flatly
contradicts Apple’s June 2013 Supplier Responsibility paper that indicates a
46-hour workweek average for Pegatron employees (2,3,4). CLW also found that Pegatron’s
Shanghai workers were forced to sign forms falsifying the number of overtime
hours worked.
Other violations
noted by CLW in their report include several forms of dispatch labor abuse (see
earlier blog here on dispatch labor). Recent examples at Pegatron include withholding
worker IDs so that Pegatron employees are unable to work elsewhere because they
lack proper identification and recruiting companies withholding pay or fining
workers for not working enough as well as not providing recruits with mandatory
health insurance. Also noted by CLW is hiring discrimination, women’s rights
violations, underage labor, contract violations, insufficient worker training,
insufficient wages, poor working conditions (e.g., employees being made to
stand for 10-11 hours at a time, employees provided gloves that do not
sufficiently protect them from the materials used to create metal backplates
for the iPad), poor living conditions (e.g., 30-minute waits to enter their
production facility, tight living quarters, packed cafeterias and cold showers),
difficulty in taking leave, labor health and safety concerns, ineffective
grievance channels, abuse by management, and environmental pollution (CLW found
metal-cutting fluids were dumped directly into the local sewer systems) (1).
This May, 2013 Apple
championed its “success” in achieving positive reforms at Foxconn (another
important manufacturing subsidiary) including higher wages and shorter
work-weeks (1,3,4). While there can be no doubt that there have been some
important positive changes at Foxconn the CLW reports regarding Foxconn (6)
have brought the claim of “success” by Apple under renewed scrutiny. Whatever
positive changes there have been at Foxconn are clearly lacking at the three Pegatron factories CLW now reports
on.
CLW executive
director Li Qiang reports that their, “investigations have shown that labor
conditions at Pegatron factories are even worse than those at Foxconn factories”
(1). Apple responded to CLW’s newest
report with a statement, saying it is “committed to providing safe and fair
working conditions throughout our supply chain” and that it had conducted 15
comprehensive audits at Pegatron facilities since 2007, including surprise
audits within the past 18 months. It also confirmed that some labor brokers
were withholding worker ID cards and demanded Pegatron “put a stop” to it
(2,3,4). In fact, labor conditions at the Pegatron AVY factory are so poor that
within a period of two weeks more than 25% (30 out of 110) new recruits quit
(3).
Apple also
indicated it would investigate the claims outlined in the China Labor Watch
report, and take corrective action where needed. We applaud this stand but
wonder if these steps will be sufficient as we have already seen that Apple
audits are unable to adequately identify the realities of its supplier
factories. In allowing its suppliers to continue abusive labor practices, Apple
is facilitating unhealthy working conditions. Apple is clearly not living up to
its own standards.
2.http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324170004578633951552047928.html?mod=wsj_share_tweet
YOUTUBE VIDEO ABOUT PEGATRON MADE BY CHINA LABOR WATCH:
