Report: Apple Does Not Care Enough About Workers in China

[Guest]

Should Apple be concerned about the people employed by its partners?

Report: Apple Does Not Care Enough About Workers in China : Read more

 

[theconsolegamer]

Die, Apple just die already.

 

[stratplaya]

Apple used to be the darlings of the press. I wonder why the change now?

Besides, doesn't 99% of all electronics get made in China?

 

[Onus]

The onus is not on Apple. If the conditions are that bad (and I'm not implying they aren't; they appear to be atrocious) then a rational work force should refuse to work under those conditions. This is the main reason labor unions formed during the Industrial Revolution (even if not why they exist today). If unions or similar labor organizations are "illegal," then a political solution is required, over which Apple has no control unless you believe their responsibilities include sedition and supporting some kind of revolutionary movement.

 

[davewolfgang]

Hey, they aren't Union...so who cares??? (That's /sarc for those that don't "get it".)

 

[Guest]

Something like the "Fair Trade" label needs applying to all the goods we buy, we need to know where everything comes from and the pay/conditions of the workers involved.

 

[wiyosaya]

So this is a surprise????

The only thing, apparently, crApple cares about is transferring the money in its customer's bank accounts to the crApple bank account - even if doing so costs the lives of the people it [strike]employs[/strike] usurps.

The only thing worse than this, IMHO, is the fact that crApple customers do not recognize that they enable dysfunctional crApple to continue with practices such as this by buying crApple products - mostly in the name of keeping up with the Jones' or doing stuff because it is said to be easier to do on a crApple.

 

[rawful]

[citation][nom]jtt283[/nom]The onus is not on Apple. If the conditions are that bad (and I'm not implying they aren't; they appear to be atrocious) then a rational work force should refuse to work under those conditions. This is the main reason labor unions formed during the Industrial Revolution (even if not why they exist today). If unions or similar labor organizations are "illegal," then a political solution is required, over which Apple has no control unless you believe their responsibilities include sedition and supporting some kind of revolutionary movement.[/citation]

I believe their responsibility includes not making use of such forms of labor, as irrational a viewpoint as that seems to be. You can require certain work conditions to be met as part of your contract with another company. If they do not meet those requirements, they do not get your work and are guilty of breach of contract. Foxconn would no longer exist if the big OEM corporations stopped using them until they gave workers fair pay and rights.

The problem is also the consumers. Most people just don't care about workers in those conditions as long as they are in another part of the world. Out of sight, out of mind. If the consumers stopped purchasing goods made from this labor, it also wouldn't be used anymore. The problem is also our government, for not implementing extreme tariffs and sanctions against countries with such enormous human rights problems. Instead our government is busy starting wars and catering to the corporations that paid for them to get into office.

 

[sunflier]

Apple itself shows, at least via its website, increased interest in the well-being of the workers...

Just another Apple iLie.

 

[wiyosaya]

[citation][nom]jtt283[/nom]The onus is not on Apple. If the conditions are that bad (and I'm not implying they aren't; they appear to be atrocious) then a rational work force should refuse to work under those conditions. This is the main reason labor unions formed during the Industrial Revolution (even if not why they exist today). If unions or similar labor organizations are "illegal," then a political solution is required, over which Apple has no control unless you believe their responsibilities include sedition and supporting some kind of revolutionary movement.[/citation]
Total Crap. crApple enables this by contracting with manufacturers who are known to be abusive of employees.

As Fez777 says, IF crApple employed something similar to Fair Trade practices, this would be much less of a concern. There are companies out there that do this successfully.

 

[lockhrt999]

Apple care only about themselves.

 

[lumberjack86]

Apple in the hands of Jobs would plow over any man, woman, or child to move toward innovation. It's to early to tell what Cook will do with these leftover lingering problems. We live in a culture that is ignorant to the plights of others and as long as we get what we want for cheap that's all that matters. For something to harm Apples "spotless image" it's going to take something massive that changes the way we get out products. People complain about Apple having slave labor while writing on an ipad or iphone. If you really want to see this change, stop being a hypocrite and do a little research on where your products are being made.

 

[Guest]

It's not Apple's problem, but rather the Chinese Gov't. The labor is there regardless if Apple saturates it. The hours and pay may be crap, but the alternative of no employment is much worse for the Chinese. Apple is being competitive in a competitive world. China continues to keep there currency under valued all while taking from the people to support under funded building project such as their knock off Manhattan.There's this emotional cause regarding "Blood Diamonds" that is to protect the best interests of native people, though there underlying benefit is to control, regulate and fix the gemstone market via.

 

[wiyosaya]

@rawful - So happy you get it!!!!

 

[wiyosaya]

[citation][nom]dcompart[/nom]It's not Apple's problem, but rather the Chinese Gov't. The labor is there regardless if Apple saturates it. The hours and pay may be crap, but the alternative of no employment is much worse for the Chinese. Apple is being competitive in a competitive world. China continues to keep there currency under valued all while taking from the people to support under funded building project such as their knock off Manhattan.There's this emotional cause regarding "Blood Diamonds" that is to protect the best interests of native people, though there underlying benefit is to control, regulate and fix the gemstone market via.[/citation]
More Total Crap.Governments cannot solve the problem unless their people understand what is acceptable human behavior in the first place, and the Chinese government has absolutely no idea what is acceptable human behavior.

 

[memadmax]

"a thing that has 270,000 moving parts built by the lowest bidder. Makes you feel good, doesn't it? "

 

[Guest]

[citation][nom]Fez777[/nom]Something like the "Fair Trade" label needs applying to all the goods we buy, we need to know where everything comes from and the pay/conditions of the workers involved.[/citation]

Are you willing to pay a premium for the product. In the food industry this form of branding gains little traction and due to baseless labeling (ex. BST free labeling) that has caught on. In tough economic times people buy based on price, not on the benefits of the niche.

 

[zak_mckraken]

Apple do have a responsability since they're directly supporting Foxconn in the way they treat their employees by buying from them. Since Apple has the long end of the stick, they could help the workers. Here's a simple and plausible scenario :

Apple : Hey Foxconn, we have the best-selling phone in the world. You want to build it for us? Start treating your workers right, else we'll move production to some other third-world country.
Foxconn : Okay, but we'll need to increase salaries by 10%.
Apple : No problem. We'll label the phone as "Fair trade" and price them 20% more.

 

[jaber2]

If anyone here cares then don't buy Apple products or services, that is the least you can show your support, but if we did this to every products we buy then I would guess we would die of hunger and live in a tent.

 

[noblerabbit]

[citation][nom]theconsolegamer[/nom]Die, Apple just die already.[/citation]

Tell me your secret to positive upvotes, please; I never have such luck with your statements.
/agreed

 

[lumberjack86]

Apple made 13 billion in 1 quarter of the year. If they took 1 billion out of that converted it into yuan and paid the 230 thousand workers at Foxconn it would more than double their yearly salary. They currently make 24 thousand yuan a year, that 1 billion would pay each worker an extra 27 thousand yuan a year. It is literally a drop in the bucket for a company like Apple to do something like this and if they did it would make everybody a lot happier.

 

[-Fran-]

Apple (nor any other company manufacturing there or even us buying their products) really care about the folks being exploited in China. How many of us will throw away our modern commodities or stop buying them to make a stand (or a point) that we don't want Chinese people being the 21th century slaves?

Are we really that good morally to pay 200usd+ for something that makes Chinese people leave like any other folk in a 1st rate country? Hardly it will make 10% of all the people reading here.

Apple is not the only one to point fingers here. WE ALL ARE AT FAULT HERE!

This is not a heads up for Apple alone; it's for everybody to understand what's going on within the Chinese mentality here.

Read this:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/business/apple-america-and-a-squeezed-middle-class.html?_r=3&ref=charlesduhigg&pagewanted=all

That will give you all a better understanding of the Chinese.

Cheers!

 

[rawful]

[citation][nom]lumberjack86[/nom]Apple made 13 billion in 1 quarter of the year. If they took 1 billion out of that converted it into yuan and paid the 230 thousand workers at Foxconn it would more than double their yearly salary. They currently make 24 thousand yuan a year, that 1 billion would pay each worker an extra 27 thousand yuan a year. It is literally a drop in the bucket for a company like Apple to do something like this and if they did it would make everybody a lot happier.[/citation]

Exactly, they wouldn't even have to raise the price. I am sure they would anyways, because that is the type of company Apple is (which is why they won't make Foxconn improve conditions in the first place).

Seriously though, this trade system ONLY benefits the corporations. It is not a benefit to America that we get cheap electronics, because now we have no jobs and our economy is crashing. It is not a benefit to Chinese workers to make us these cheap electronics, because their job has horrific work conditions and they don't even get paid enough to live off of what they go through, much less even afford to buy the freaking things that they are building.

We NEED to stop buying things made in third-world countries. It does not help their economy or living conditions and it kills ours. They are just being taken advantage of by corporations, just like we are. What would help the Chinese people is to set up a government that guarantees human rights, just as we used to have, and to build local economies, just like we used to have (you know, when we were prospering instead of slowly choking to death).

 

[Netherscourge]

REPORT: Apple, Intel, AMD-ATI, Microsoft, Google, LG, Nvidia and every other American-based Tech company that outsources manufacturing jobs to China don't care about workers in China.

It's cheaper not to care than it is to care. If anyone of them cared, they'd contract factories in the US to make their products.

 

[Ragnar-Kon]

Well, at least Apple bothered to release a report on the working conditions in their supplier's factories. That is more than any other American tech company has done.