Is your overtime pay worth your overtime?
Editor’s note: This article is from WeChat public account “iFeng Technology” (ID: ifeng_tech ), the author Xiao Yu.
Foxconn Zhengzhou factory gate
Apple admits violation of Chinese labor law
Apple and its foundry Foxconn confirmed that they used too many temporary workers in the Zhengzhou factory to produce the latest iPhone, in violation of China’s Labor Law.
After Apple is about to release a new iPhone on Wednesday, China Labor Watch, a labor rights protection organization, issued a report on Apple and Foxconn. The non-profit organization surveyed the working conditions of the Chinese factory and said that it had discovered other violations of labor rights by Apple partners in the past.
China Labor Watch said in its latest report that its undercover investigators work at the Foxconn Zhengzhou factory, and one of them has been working here for four years. One of their main findings is that temporary workers, the so-called dispatchers, accounted for about 50% of the employees in the Zhengzhou factory in August. According to the provisions of the Chinese Labor Law, temporary workers account for up to 10% of factory employees.
Apple said that after investigation, the company found that “the proportion of dispatched workers exceeded our standards” and “is currently working closely with Foxconn to solve this problem”. Apple added that after the problem was discovered, they worked with the supplier to “take immediate corrective action”.
Foxconn also confirmed that after the business review, the company found a problem of violations of dispatched workers.
Over the years, Apple’s supply chain has been criticized for failing to meet labor standards. Apple has put pressure on business partners to improve factory working conditions, otherwise it will face the risk of losing Apple orders. However, Apple suppliers and assemblers are always trying to make more phones. Every important holiday season, Foxconn will employ tens of thousands of temporary workers to increase production.
“We recently discovered the working conditions of the Foxconn Zhengzhou factory, which violates Apple’s voluntary code of conduct,” China Labor Watch said in the report. “Apple has the responsibility and ability to make its supply chain work bar.The pieces have been fundamentally improved. However, Apple is transferring costs to workers through their suppliers and profiting from the exploitation of Chinese workers.
Female Workers’ Dormitory
Although the report pointed out that 55% of Foxconn factory workers were dispatched last year, about 50% in August this year, but this includes students internships. Since many students will return to school at the end of August, the proportion of this dispatcher is now close to 30%, which still violates the provisions of the Chinese Labor Law.
Apple also said in a statement: “We believe that everyone in our supply chain should be treated with dignity and respect. To ensure that our high standards are enforced, we have established a sound management. The system begins with training workplace rights, on-site interviews, anonymous appeal channels, and ongoing audits.”
Foxconn said that the company found evidence of “using dispatch workers” and “workers working overtime” and did not meet the company’s guidelines. Foxconn insists that overtime work has always been a voluntary act of workers. Foxconn also said: “The company is working to solve the problems found in our Zhengzhou factory and will closely monitor the progress. If we need to take more measures to meet the high standards we set for our business operations, we will not hesitate.”
“Overtime is voluntary”
The latest report by China Labor Watch found that Apple and Foxconn are seeking to produce about 12,000 iPhones per shift in the Zhengzhou factory. The report also pointed out that last year’s iPhone XS production is more complicated than the iPhone X, requiring more workers.
Worker shift in the morning
The mail shows that Apple said in August that it is investigating the findings of China Labor Watch and questioning the report. China Labor Watch said that Apple sent an investigator to the Zhengzhou factory and met with Foxconn management to discuss the use of dispatch workers. However, Apple and Foxconn still allow this in violation of the 10% labor law. The situation continues.
A Chinese labor watch investigator said in an anonymous diary that although workers often need to work overtime, most workers want to use overtime to make more money.
“We investigated the allegations of China Labor Watch and found that most of the allegations were wrong,” Apple said. “We have confirmed that all workers will receive appropriate compensation, including overtime pay and bonuses. All overtime is voluntary. No evidence of forced labor was found.”
Apple added that less than 1% of workers are student workers, and a small percentage of student workers volunteer to work overtime or work night shifts. Apple and Foxconn said the issue has been corrected.
An investigator found that the wages of most Zhengzhou factory workers are about 4,000 yuan per month (about 562 US dollars). After deducting taxes and other mandatory fees, their wages are about 3,000 yuan per month. According to a report by China Daily earlier this year, in 2018, the per capita income of Chinese people was 28,228 yuan, equivalent to 2352 yuan per month.