Facing reports of worker abuse and suicide at eight of their top suppliers, Apple CEO Tim Cook agreed to let The Fair Labor Association conduct inspections at the suspect facilities. FLA president Auret van Heerden initially reported that the factories were "first class" and conditions were above average. At the time van Heerden cited alienation and boredom as the only significant issues for workers at the Foxconn facility. After spending several days there, van Heerden now says that there are many issues to be addressed. While he would not reveal any specifics, he did state that the FLA would reveal more information in the weeks to come.
The FLA has also been the subject of criticism from groups like SumOfUs.org. "Instead of actually solving the problem, they’re trying to whitewash it; hiring a business-funded group with a long track record of serving as a corporate mouthpiece,” said Taren Stinebrickner-Kauffman, Executive Director of SumOfUs.org.
The FLA will be interviewing 35,000 workers in the next three weeks.
The workers will be asked many questions such as:
-how they were hired.
-were they paid a fee.
-were they offered contracts and if so did they understand it.
-the conditions of their dorm rooms and food
-were their complaints acted on.
-their emotional well-being.
Apple is also facing a trademark dispute regarding the "ipad" name. This is clearly not a helpful distraction as Apple faces their public in an attempt to save face.
Do you think that the spotlight on worker conditions in China will affect Apple's brand?
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