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Judging The Apple 'Sweatshop' Charge

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the that's-laterally-not-differently dept.

jurgen writes "MacWorld summarizes an article published in the U.K., stating that Apple's iPods are made in China by women who work 15 hours/day, make $50/month, and have to pay half of that right back to the company for housing and food. The article also claims the workers live in dormitories where they are housed 100 per room, and are not allowed visitors." A Wired article looks at the same story, exploring the reliability of the Mail on Sunday's claims. From that article: "The situation is too murky for a rush to judgment on Apple's ethics here, and it may well meet minimum global standards. But for a company that has staked its image on progressive politics, Apple has set itself up as a potential lightning rod on global labor standards. Sweatshops came back to bite Nike after its customers rose up in arms; and Apple can expect a similar grilling from its upscale Volvo-driving fans in the months ahead."

10 of 828 comments (clear)

  1. Darn tootin' by mgabrys_sf · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    Much better to let them starve to death. The lot of 'em. Food is for pussies. Apple should pull the plug immediately.

  2. Sweatshops are GOOD by OpenSourced · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    Sweatshops are GOOD. Of course it doesn't seem that way seen from our first-world perspective, but is better than hunger. It's usually the only way out from extreme poverty. We had an industrial revolution where childen worked in similar circumstances. It's not something to be proud of, the feelings are all against it, but you cannot jump from having nothing to having everyting. As Groucho Marx said "I worked myself up from nothing to a state of extreme poverty". Poor countries need sweatshops, need free trade of agricultural products, and need less subsidies. That's the way out.

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    Rome taught me patience and assiduous application to detail. Virtues which temper the boldness of great, general views.
  3. Re:It's Foxconn, Not Apple by falcon5768 · · Score: 1, Flamebait
    its no different than someone saying something is awful because they use thier own fucked up western mentality of whats right in the world when 90% of the world thinks its wrong.

    then again we want to change the world when most of the US has the same issues with low wages and poor working conditions, and unlike the chineese economy ours doesnt support people making minimum wage. Maybe if you guys actually focused on the US and fix OUR problems before you delt with other countrys poor working conditions, the US might have one leg to stand on when trying to get other countrys to use our example. Its kinda hard to tell someone else to be moral in their ehtics when you have a lower class who cant even afored rent when most chineese can in their economy.

    --

    "Slashdot, where telling the truth is overrated but lying is insightful."

  4. Re:A few random thoughts by KlomDark · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    Your brain rings hollow. So does your soul. You make me sick.

  5. Re:My personal observations by triffid_98 · · Score: 0, Flamebait
    It is called a race toward the bottom. I have personally witnessed outsourcing of people who make $1.25/hr in the Dominican Republic. "Their Jobs" are now over in China where the pay is $0.10/hr. 2/3 of the factories in the tax free zone of La Romana are now sitting vacant.


    I hope the hippie treehuggers are all happy when everyone in the world becomes 'equal', and we're globally transformed from 1st, 2nd and 3rd world nations to one big global poverty playground. After all, it was what they wanted right?
  6. Re:OH NOES!!!1!!! by Surt · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    Ok, whoever modded this as a troll is on crack. Who exactly was being trolled here? I've not had a single reply, and I think it was a pretty reasoned response to the parent's claims.

    --
    "Who is the Journal of Quantum Physics going to believe?" --Stephen Hawking
  7. Re:A few random thoughts by Pendersempai · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    So why don't they work elsewhere?

  8. Re:A few random thoughts by ccmay · · Score: 0, Flamebait
    If consumers weren't driven by low prices there'd be no need to move factories anywhere.

    Thank you Captain Obvious. And if your auntie had bollocks, she'd be your uncle.

    When you find some consumers who don't respond to low prices, please tell me, as I would like to go there and open my own store.

    -ccm

    --
    Too much Law; not enough Order.
  9. We love Slavery! by Jackie_Chan_Fan · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    Lets face it. We love slavery. We are horrible creatures that could careless about each other.

    We'll given millions of illegal mexican immigrants amnesty because we love slavery!

    We'll sell out our working class because they demand a quality life but slaves dont! Slaves can be used without a care in the world.

    We love to use humans and not pay them.

    We love to take credit for work other humans do.

    We love to make money and not care about each other's well being.

    We love slavery. We are horrible people that do not care about each other at all. We're doomed.

    There is no reason why this has to happen, and yet we exploit people at every oppurtunity... because WE LOVE SLAVERY... WE ARE HORRIBLE PEOPLE.

    We are not evolved enough to survive as a species. We'll kill each other for a dollar just to feel special in our fancy cars that the next guy cant afford. We dont deserve to the future, and we'll never get there.

  10. Re:A few random thoughts by edis · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    they could earn EVEN higher income, or better conditions, or BOTH, if it was about more justice in their enslaving.

    And Apple, at the very least, should be expected to think different?

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