Apple Responded to BBC Labor Abuse Accusations

BBC recently claimed that Apple is treating its employees poorly, especially the Chinese factory workers. When hearing it, Apple responded to BBC labor abuse accusations and Jeff Williams, the Senior Vice President of Apple Operations said that he and Tim Cook were very offended by what BBC showed in their presentation.

BBC accused Apple of poor employee treatment in a documentary that was aired last night on BBC one. Several undercover workers were sent to the Pegatron factory in Shanghai, China and discovered the poor conditions in which the factory people worked for Apple.

The BBC documentary showed workers who were working more than 60 hours per week or 12 to 16 hour shifts. Some of the Chinese workers lived in cramped rooms and some working 18 consecutive days without any days off.
The BBC documentary revealed that there could be illegal tin from Indonesia brought inside Apple’s supply chain. Some of the tin mines have children working and offer very precarious work conditions.

The Pegatron factory in Shanghai responded to BBC’s accusations saying that the main priority is to provide a safe work environment for the Apple workers. The standards they set are very high and they conduct very rigorous training for their managers and workers. Pegatron representatives also stated that external auditors visit regularly in order to see if the work environment improves. The Shanghai factory officials said that they will investigate what BBC showed in their documentary and take action if it’s necessary.

Apple responded to BBC labor abuse accusations via an email, contesting BBC’s claims and arguing everything BBC implied in their documentary. Williams said that Apple is always working on improving its working conditions.
Williams sent out an email to more than 5,000 UK staff members saying that Tim Cook and himself have been “deeply” offended of what BBC implied in their presentation.

This is not the first time Apple is accused of not respecting work conditions. Chinese company Foxconn claimed that student interns had worked in one of their factories in shifts patterns that violate company policies. Also, Foxcann claimed that the factory employed 14 year old workers and reported protests and acts of violence inside the factory.
Image Source: technobuffalo