Another Foxconn Worker Commits Suicide

[sebastinfakow]

Wuld you blame the company or the government that accomodates such treatment? Not only that... Is it not the government that is supposed to offer its people decent standards of living, thus almost forcing people into taking whatever job under whatever conditions? I can't exactly imagine something like this in Norway, for example, where people have certain rights and aren't pisspoor because of some reasonable economic planning?

 

[youssef 2010]

Human capital is what makes any company great & not the technology.They should really talk to the workers to see what's troubling them & solve it.

 

[someguynamedmatt]

[citation][nom]Tomtompiper[/nom]Statistically this makes Foxcon one of the safest places to work. The suicide rate in the US is around 20 people per 100,000 per year, Foxcon has 250,000 employees, do the math folks before jumping to conclusions.[/citation]


Anyway, [citation][nom]ecnovaec[/nom]what these articles always fail to mention is the average suicide rate in China is 10 in 100,000, and they have had 14 in 300,000, far below the national average....[/citation]

Exactly. Technically, CHINA should be trying to stop their suiides, not just Foxconn. It's not Foxconn's fault people are killing themselves - they've actually made it better for the people, according to these statistics.

 

[f-14]

[citation][nom]Tomtompiper[/nom]Statistically this makes Foxcon one of the safest places to work. The suicide rate in the US is around 20 people per 100,000 per year, Foxcon has 250,000 employees, do the math folks before jumping to conclusions.[/citation]

you should do your own math, 250,000/14=1 in every 17,857 people working at foxconn.

judging from the comments there's alot of chinese reading this site. my question to them is : is it really worth living in prison for the money? they don't get to choose what foods to buy/eat at the market, they don't get to leave the premises, they don't get to see family friends or loved ones, they don't get to talk to their co-workers even when they aren't working, they aren't even permited sexual relations unless they're raped by the gaurds. cripes prisoners in america even get to see their family and talk to each other more and eat better food and they get paid nothing! some american poor people even try to get thrown in jail during the winter and american prisoners try to kill each other over which gang they belong in!
point is the employees are treated like prisoners, they have no outside contact and next to nothing to enjoy, and you think it's no big deal to kill yourself in china?! well i suppose that's communism for you, i suppose all the objectors were run over by tanks already.

it's a pity your only world is a little cage in a communist country. europe and north and south america aren't like that unless the people involved actually are captured slaves.

oh well i understand you have to do the great leaders mao's bidding (yes i know he's dead and look at the power still being exuded) in this war to destroy america with economics instead of nuclear bombs. it is going to cost china as dearly as it cost the soviets to fight the nazi's.

 

[jazz84]

Why do people continue to compare a single COMPANY'S suicide rate to other NATIONAL suicide rates? A COMPANY SHOULD NOT HAVE A FREAKING SUICIDE RATE TO BEGIN WITH!

 

[Guest]

never mind the nets, hasn't anyone thought of locking the door to the roof?

 

[of the way]

I don't care if Foxconn is doing more for their workers than some other companies in some ways. There aren't many companies that I would be scared for my life if I were to visit, but Foxconn is definitely one. If I saw a Foxconn security guard walking my way, I would turn and RUN. I definitely do what I can to not purchase anything they have a hand in.

 

[cookoy]

it's sad to treat any suicide as a mere statistic. so we'll just write this one off as one of the expected suicides for this year?

 

[alidan]

[citation][nom]JeanLuc[/nom]Yes but people don't normally make a point of committing suicide at there place of work.[/citation]

in america we have better options than to jump.
we have easy access to guns. a bullet in the head if far less painfull than if you manage to technicaly survive the fall and live that extra 10-30 seconds depending on how big the building is.

 

[NuclearShadow]

[citation][nom]Tomtompiper[/nom]"Do you honestly still wish to defend them? "You are judging them by western standards, and you are probably wearing underwear made in sweatshops by children, trainers made in sweatshops by wage slaves and the truth is the Foxcon workers are in much better conditions than many of the people who manufacture the products you use and wear. Boycotting Foxcon goods will not improve standards at their factories, it will just make their employees ex employees in poorer jobs and some other company will take up the slack. [/citation]

Actually I prefer to buy and wear clothing that is made in America.
You may shop at Walmart for your clothes sir but I do not. Also "judging them by western standards"?! I'm pretty sure sexual assault is illegal and unacceptable there as much as in the western world. This is just lowly of you to try to justify such a act as a culture difference
and part of their culture.

Settling for a lesser evil is not acceptable. People like you frighten me on how cold hearted you can be. If we were in the American civil war times would you be speaking in favor of slavery? Would your excuse be well if the African's weren't enslaved we would have to pay more for cotton and if they were free they would lose whatever shelter and food that they currently receive? That is the logic you are applying and I don't know if your just ignorant or that damn black hearted.

If you want workers paid a fair wage and in excellent conditions ask Apple to make the phones in the US and be willing to pay four times as much for the privilege of owning one.

So not accepting intimation through threats, physical assault, and sexual assault is somehow asking for excellent conditions? You've got to be kidding me. I highly doubt if you were raped at your workplace you would simply just accept it and tell yourself that if you try to stop such acts it would be asking for "excellent conditions" and that it would somehow raise the price of your service to consumers. Asking for human decency is not asking for much.

Also your highly exaggerating the price hike that would be needed for these people to make a living wage and have decent working and living conditions. No one is expecting a utopia and I don't think anyone is expecting a mass change all at once. If they simply invested a small amount to improve the work and living conditions eventually everything that needs to be done would be. However the abuse of the workers there is no excuse for and has no reason to continue for another second.

What do you think is worth more? The lives and well-being of our fellow man? Or Investors sacrificing a extremely small amount and a consumer spending a few bucks more for a product?

 

[Travis Beane]

Edit: Decided to retract my comment.

 

[nebun]

maybe he was not happy with is iPhone

 

[False_Dmitry_II]

This has nothing to do with the civil war, which had nothing to do with slavery - it was about states' rights.

You have a point with the physical and sexual assault. (though it's not like I've done any research so I don't know how prevalent/accurate your allegations are)

But a living wage? They had that relatively for the country before their salary got nearly/over doubled after the outrage started.

We had this small little thing a few hundred years ago called the Industrial Revolution. Conditions were worse. By alot. Slums, the whole deal, disease, falling into machinery etc. And then the west finally amassed enough stuff to become the 1st world western countries they are. China and India can be said to be in a stage in between that and where we are, and at some point their current position in the world order would be taken over by other places.

The difference? 1. It wasn't the information age. Most people at the time may not have even heard of countries as far as China, also wouldn't even hear about at least some important stuff that happens in their own country. There are alot of things that are affected by this fact. Like stuff happening in general as often as it used to, but it could be heard more often now about more and father places and it is thus percieved as happening more than it used to.
2. There wasn't a 1st world country to get all mad about stuff even if they could hear about it happening.

 

[ecnovaec]

[citation][nom]jazz84[/nom]Why do people continue to compare a single COMPANY'S suicide rate to other NATIONAL suicide rates? A COMPANY SHOULD NOT HAVE A FREAKING SUICIDE RATE TO BEGIN WITH![/citation]

....are you implying that companies do no have humans working for them? in their COUNTRY 10 out of 100,000 commit suicide, in this COMPANY fewer than 20 in 300,000 do... which is lower than the average in the COUNTRY the people that work for this COMPANY live in.... you really aren't getting that, are you?

 

[jj463rd]

[citation][nom]alidan[/nom]in america we have better options than to jump.we have easy access to guns. a bullet in the head if far less painfull than if you manage to technicaly survive the fall and live that extra 10-30 seconds depending on how big the building is.[/citation]
Standing in front of a fast moving train is another good and quick alternative too.

 

[geoffs]

Ok, I know this is tacky, but someone has to say it.

Foxconn, the suicide factory.

Before you begin bashing me for being insensitive. I'm not insensitive, and suicide is no joke. I'm not trying to make light of it either, my humor is directed at Foxconn, not the suicides.

Now you can start bashing me.

 

[carlhenry]

[citation][nom]Tomtompiper[/nom]Statistically this makes Foxcon one of the safest places to work. The suicide rate in the US is around 20 people per 100,000 per year, Foxcon has 250,000 employees, do the math folks before jumping to conclusions.[/citation]

why are you comparing a state vs a workplace? are the 100,000 people in united states also forced to work based on your stats? find some logic before jumping into the lake.

 

[carlhenry]

[citation][nom]ecnovaec[/nom]....are you implying that companies do no have humans working for them? in their COUNTRY 10 out of 100,000 commit suicide, in this COMPANY fewer than 20 in 300,000 do... which is lower than the average in the COUNTRY the people that work for this COMPANY live in.... you really aren't getting that, are you?[/citation]

yeah, but try to compare those stats with the "working" conditions? you really aren't getting that, are you? your comparing apples to pineapples.

 

[mayne92]

[citation][nom]Tomtompiper[/nom]Statistically this makes Foxcon one of the safest places to work. The suicide rate in the US is around 20 people per 100,000 per year, Foxcon has 250,000 employees, do the math folks before jumping to conclusions.[/citation]
That is really all you have...statistics. How about actually considering things other than just the numbers when a lot more is at play...like the conditions, pay, onsite housing, etc. These people eat,sleep,live and breathe foxconn...can you say that for the 20 Americans per 100,000? So I say you come up with better logic before trying to say everybody has missed the point...

 

[rohitbaran]

The comments about Foxconn being unsafe might not be totally valid. BTW, it is the developed countries whose citizens want cheap products. How do they cut costs? Probably by paying low and working an employee to max. Even if they increased their wages, they aren't probably still enough or maybe something else is wrong.

 

[rohitbaran]

[citation][nom]rohitbaran[/nom]How do they cut costs? [/citation]
By they, I meant Foxconn.

 

[jazz84]

[citation][nom]ecnovaec[/nom]....are you implying that companies do no have humans working for them? in their COUNTRY 10 out of 100,000 commit suicide, in this COMPANY fewer than 20 in 300,000 do... which is lower than the average in the COUNTRY the people that work for this COMPANY live in.... you really aren't getting that, are you?[/citation]


Oh yes, I am certainly "getting that." My point is that for a single company's suicide rate to be that close to a country's suicide rate is terrible (and yes, when we're talking about PEOPLE KILLING THEMSELVES, 20 in roughly 300,000 is still far too much). For all you stat monkeys out there, try this: compare Foxconn's suicide rate to the suicide rate of OTHER SIMILAR COMPANIES. At least that would be a fair comparison. But I digress; what the stat-heads like Tomtompiper and ecnovaec fail to realize here is that if a company has ANY trend of worker suicide (honestly, I don't give a crap how it compares to the host country), it's a problem. Attempting to rationalize it away with numbers is ignorant and, dare I say, inhuman.

 

[jimmysmitty]

[citation][nom]JeanLuc[/nom]It's not as if every piece of computer hardware is made by Foxconn. I build my own PC's anyway so it makes it easier for to find out where the products have come from. As for any other items its just a case of finding out if they work with Foxconn or not and you get that from reading reviews of the items you buy which you should do anyway before buying expensive goods.[/citation]

You would be suprised really. If I remember correctly, Foxconn also makes sockets for mobos and that includes Intel and AMD sockets. They might also design the PCB boards for GPUs and other electronic components.

I do doubt they make every piece but they still have their hands in a lot of it.

 

[bassof]

Why should Apple make so insane much money???

and those who earn the money for them
may be allowed to commit suicide if they are not satisfied
Boycutt APPLE now!!

 

[toyotabedzrock]

This seems cruel, not only are they slaves, but they are not allowed to kill themselves if they truly cannot tolerate it.