Apple suppliers violating labour standards despite Apple’s internal monitoring
Last week on The Wire we reported on an incident in a factory for Apple’s touchscreens, where it is believed scores of workers were hospitalized after exposure to toxic chemicals on the production line. This week the company is again under scrutiny, after it released data about labour conditions in its “supplier responsibility report”. Apple says that these annual reports hold its suppliers accountable, but the figures in its own report are at best a mixed report card. According to their own figures, less than half of Apple’s suppliers comply with minimum pay rates, and the number complying with environmental standards has plummeted over the last year. Anthony Agius edits Mac Talk, one of Australia’s most popular online blogs about apple products, and he begins this report. Also in this story- Leeora Black, managing director of the Australian Centre for Corporate Social Responsibility.