Apple's contract factory violated the rules by using student workers, Apple responded by suspending its new business cooperation

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Apple's contract factory violated the rules by using student workers, Apple responded by suspending its new business cooperation [Copy link]

A reporter from The Paper learned from the supply chain that Apple's OEM Pegatron violated regulations by employing student workers, who violated regulations by working overtime and night shifts during their internship at Pegatron.

According to a reporter from The Paper, the phenomenon is present in both Pegatron's Shanghai and Kunshan factories. Autumn is usually the peak season for iPhone production, and this is when factories need manpower the most.

Pegatron is an important supply chain company for Apple, mainly manufacturing iPhones for Apple. Pegatron's Shanghai and Kunshan factories are Changshuo Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. and Shishuo Electronics (Kunshan) Co., Ltd. respectively.

On the 8th, Pegatron confirmed in a statement provided to The Paper: "During recent audit procedures, customers discovered that some student workers in Pegatron's Shanghai and Kunshan factories were working night shifts, overtime, and doing work unrelated to their majors, in violation of local laws and regulations."

Pegatron did not directly respond to the number of these student workers, but Pegatron emphasized that when the above incident was discovered, the company immediately transferred these employees away from the production line, and cooperated with customers and third-party professional organizations to make proper arrangements for the employees, assisting them to return home or school, and provide reasonable remuneration as well as necessary support and care.

"We also immediately took necessary steps to comply with the RBA (Responsible Business Alliance) Code of Conduct, strengthened our compliance processes through collaboration with external auditors, and included code of conduct assessments as one of our senior executives' key performance indicators," Pegatron said in a statement.

Apple confirmed the incident to The Paper. In a statement, Apple said that they discovered a few weeks ago that Pegatron violated Apple's supplier code of conduct during the management of student work projects, and that " the relevant person in charge of Pegatron tried every means to evade our supervision mechanism ."

Apple said in a statement: "Pegatron misclassified student workers in the project and forged documents to cover up violations of Apple's guidelines , including allowing interns to work night shifts and/or overtime, and some interns' work content was unrelated to their majors. The investigation did not find any forced labor or child labor." Apple said it has taken quick action to ensure that students return home or return to school safely and receive direct subsidies in the form of financial compensation.

The Supplier Code of Conduct on Apple's official website clearly states that it is necessary to "protect student workers". Suppliers are not allowed to require employees under the age of 18 to work overtime or at night . Suppliers should ensure the proper management of student workers by properly maintaining student records and conducting strict due diligence on educational partners, and protect the rights of students in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. Suppliers are required to provide appropriate support and training to all student workers.

In general, Apple is very strict in supplier management. Over the years, Apple has been pushing suppliers to do better in environmental protection and employee rights protection.

Apple updates its Supplier Responsibility Report on its official website every year, urging suppliers to improve with higher standards. In terms of employee protection, supplier employees must participate in new employee orientation courses to learn about international labor standards. Employees can also call an external third-party anonymous hotline and can directly contact Apple's supplier responsibility team at any time. Apple attaches great importance to reports of retaliation and will investigate them upon receipt.

Apple previously disclosed that in 2019, as part of its supplier assessment, Apple interviewed more than 52,000 supplier employees. Since 2008, 19.4 million supplier employees have received rights training. More than 31,000 supplier employees have been contacted and confirmed that they have not been retaliated against for participating in Apple-led supplier assessments.

Apple reiterated in its statement: "Pegatron violated Apple's Supplier Code of Conduct. We have a strict review and approval process for student worker projects to ensure that the work content of interns is related to their majors, and prohibit interns from working overtime or night shifts."

Apple not only has strict standards for supplier responsibility, but also attaches great importance to enforcing its high standards. In response to Pegatron's violation, Apple has already imposed penalties.

Apple said in a statement: "Apple has placed Pegatron under observation, and will not engage in any new business cooperation with it until Pegatron completes all necessary corrective measures." Apple's statement also pointed out that Pegatron has dismissed the senior management directly responsible for the project.

"While our mechanisms ultimately uncovered these violations, we continue to work to further strengthen our oversight mechanisms. We remain committed to ensuring that everyone in our supply chain is protected and treated with dignity and respect," Apple said.

Pegatron has a total of five factories in mainland China, namely, Mingshuo Computer (Suzhou) Co., Ltd., Kangshuo Electronics (Suzhou) Co., Ltd., Changshuo Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Shishuo Electronics (Kunshan) Co., Ltd., and Xushuo Technology (Chongqing) Co., Ltd.

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The main reason is that foreigners cannot understand the Chinese people's willingness to endure all kinds of hardships in order to make money.