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Foxconn Workers On Strike Over iPhone 5 Production
itwbennett writes "That army of robotic assembly line workers we mentioned yesterday apparently can't get started soon enough. As many as 3,000-4,000 workers are on strike at Foxconn's Zhengzhou factory, upset at stricter quality control requirements with the iPhone 5 and having to work through a national holiday this week. 'According to workers, multiple iPhone 5 production lines from various factory buildings were in a state of paralysis for the entire day,' China Labor Watch said. Sina Weibo and Tencent Weibo are both blocking searches in Chinese for 'Foxconn strikes.'"
china unhappy.
Strike, it's the only power they have. Until they get shot for being on strike that is, or run over by a tank.. this is happening in China you know..
And actually, China lets them strike because it hurts the US more than China. It's not like Apple is going to close the slave labor camps any time soon, even if they lose a few bucks.
-The wise argue that there are few absolutes, the fool argues that there are no probabilities.
Couldnt they go on strike the day(s) of the holiday, just return the next day and start working?
Won't someone think of the hipsters?
But.. but.. but... I thought by boycotting Apple I was helping the workers!!
"I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)
But to be honest, I hope that both they get what they want AND the iPhone 5's quality goes up. The build quality seems to be pretty hit and miss at the moment. I'm actually thinking of buying a Samsung Galaxy 3, fragile behemoth that it is, just so I don't have to worry about getting a lemon iPhone 5.
Though I suppose there's some big syndicate behind them, which invariably is not a good thing.
“He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
when US and European Labor movements really started to assert themselves and address inequities and call the Robber Barons to task.
China has their army and Police -US companies had Police and Pinkertons....the workers still prevailed in the end, although much has been lost recently...
Hopefully it will not be bloody, but they deserve better than they are getting even if it means we might be paying slightly more for the next plastic POS we buy.
I'm just sayin'
Next time you trend-slaves want to buy a cell phone, try choosing one that won't ruin everyone's holiday.
the ipod's promise to revolutionize the way we live, only applies to its consumers.
Good people go to bed earlier.
I don't see how a country with such a large workforce can have any traction in a strike? Foxconn is a huge employer over there. Their working conditions are what most westerners would describe as "sweatshops", but then so are 95% of the rest of the manufacturing plants over there, so despite being unusual for "us", it's not at all uncommon for "them".
I wonder how long it takes for Foxconn to find another 4,000 workers willing to do the job for the pay? I simply can't believe that any of those employees weren't fully aware of what was and could be asked of them. They just want more pay for what's probably more work, and certainly longer work weeks. But if there are three people lined up behind you waiting to do that job for that pay the moment you turn your back, a strike doesn't seem like a good idea.
Strikes and unions just don't make sense for unskilled labor. And just because it's electronics doesn't make it skilled - if you're doing something that could be replaced with a robotic arm, it's not "skilled", skilled refers to mental skills, not physical.
I wish I had more insight into this "chinese holiday" thing though. I get the impression they take it a lot more seriously than we're giving them credit for. I see a lot of the chinese stores going on holiday all at once, it's obviously a widespread thing, maybe that five day vacation is their unwind time for the rest of the year in the sweatshop? In that case I think I can start to understand where it becomes a big deal. Kinda stupid of Apple to expect them to launch a new production line at that time, they had to see that one coming. I would expect them to have had a conversation with foxconn, "can you DO this?" And foxconn either adding a premium to the cost during that time, or sniveling and saying they'll make it happen, to keep their biggest customer. Oh to be a fly on the wall...
I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
It's a "We love this work and low wages" parade. These people love these jobs and would do anything for them. They don't mind the low pay because it's actually high. Now, economists say that the wage there is equivalent to getting about $5/hr in America. However, from what I understand Romney and Co saying, is that $5/hr plus foodstamps and welfare puts a person in a better position than any American millionaire. Truly, the poor are blessed.
So, I must conclude this is a voluntary day off to have a parade in support of wonderful working conditions that every young Chinese person dreams about.
I get that right Apple fanboys?
When you walk around with an iPhone 5, you might as well be wearing a fox fur coat - the kind with the paws and head done up taxidermy-style, draped over the shoulders.
I've seen a lot of people with iPhones and Samsung Galaxy S3s. Whenever I see a Galaxy S3, I think, how in the fuck can you actually USE that thing? So my question is, do you have first hand experience with the S3, and is it just too ridiculously big?
I'd rather have an Android but will gladly go to the iPhone if it means getting a rocking phone that actually fits in my pocket and doesn't make me look like a dork.
I believe that Android phones come in a variety of shapes and sizes. You may not believe it is true that there is not one true phone. Android phones come with keyboards; projectors; even larger sizes [and smaller ones]; at every price point; game pads; waterpoofing; 2 sim slots. Personally I quite like the HTC S for a good android phone with a smaller screen. ...but then this is another off topic post to try and detract from worker abuse at Apples manufactures.
I'd rather have an Android but will gladly go to the iPhone if it means getting a rocking phone that actually fits in my pocket and doesn't make me look like a dork.
Too late.
"Tongue tied and twisted, just an Earth bound misfit
I've said it before, and now I'm saying it again. Nerve stapling all around, or failing that, off to the punishment sphere with the lot!
Tubal-Cain smokes the white owl.
Neat coincidence, no?
...for the Chinese government to come in and do some hard core strike breaking any day now. Workers of the world flee in terror!
Ah, the irony of "The People's Party". Seriously, now, why do we even bother calling China a Communist country any more, it should just officially be changed to a "Totalitarian Bureaucratic Oligarchy".
Stricter quality control requirements with the iPhone 5?! So the purple flare really does come standard? And Foxconn doesn't make the maps app but if they did, it might be more accurate, lol. I don't have numbers on iphone failure rates but if the 4s was worse than previous versions as reliability, I could see them cracking the whip (probably literally) on version 5 production. I know that from 2007 to 2009 the macbook quality dropped from 2nd place to 6th so it does seem likely. If you're curious, an ASUS, MSI, Toshiba, Sony, and Samsung are all now more reliable than a macbook, and at most 1/2 the price.
Consumer disk storage is 6 cents a gig. Still a factor of 16 less than flash. As long as that ratio holds there will be no overnight takeover of the storage market by flash. Instead it's a creeping progression largely driven by the mobile market, outside of which the vast majority of mass storage being sold is still rotating disks. Sure a few geeks like me have begun to swap out their noisy, slow hard disks for ssd, but that's a few geeks. The PC market, the cloud, and enterprise storage, which together completely dwarf the mobile segment in terms of capacity, will continue to prefer cheap over fast and quiet for some time to come.
When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
There goes AAPL's quarter.
When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
Here's more relevant information about the reasons for the strike: http://www.businessinsider.com/foxconn-workers-go-on-strike-2012-10 The important bit is that workers are striking not because they are against stricter quality, but because tighter quality checks meant they must work harder to produce iPhone components presumably at the same rate as earlier models. And they were told to do this without additional training.Victory for workers would mean Foxconn hiring more workers and less exhausting working pace for all workers there.
No
I spend most of my time in China and Taiwan, whence the following data point, and the reason for my posting anonymously.
Workers on the Apple product assembly lines make the same repetitive motions 2,800 times per day (Macbooks) up to over 3,400 times per day for the tablets and phones. 10 minute breaks every two hours. 10 hour work days. 6 day work weeks. (But, the iphone5 is so successful, the day off is cancelled.) High-school kids in parts of china have been dragooned into serving as operators, with the threat that they MUST do these or not graduate. They get paid $US340 per month, and that's not a lot of money, even in the Chinese hinterlands.
I have two HTC phones, both on the basis of the fact that they were made in Taiwan. I simply will not own products where I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that the supply chain is unethical in its treatment of workers.
I'd rather have an Android but will gladly go to the iPhone if it means getting a rocking phone that actually fits in my pocket
Maybe it's time to trade your oshkosh b'gosh for grown-up pants? You're a big kid now.
Apple wouldn't obscure the truth would they?
Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
http://www.pdfernhout.net/beyond-a-jobless-recovery-knol.html
A 21st century issue: the irony of technologies of abundance in the hands of those still thinking in terms of scarcity.
Machines do a better job of repetitive tasks, and humans should be (if you believe all the promises made about technology a century ago) healthier, working less, and spending more time in pursuit of self-fulfillment.
It's time to liberate ourselves. Put the robots in the factories, and put the humans back on the couch (with crisps, remote control, maybe a bluetooth keyboard and game controller).
Futurist Traditionalism
Apple, and by extension, Foxconn is a cunt. Anyone who buys their products is a cunt. Don't be a cunt.
Robots should be compensated at a fair wage. For several reasons: 1. So that humans can still get jobs (albeit crappy ones) 2. So when the Robots become sentient, they can't hold being made unpaid slaves as a grievance against the human race. 3. So plutocrats just can't fire/low ball every human worker.
It can't be reasoned with. It doesn't feel pity or remorse or fear and it absolutely will not stop, ever, until you are unemployed.
So, the US consumers (us) complain about scratches caused by rubbing keys on the iPhone 5, which probably caused the whole "stricter quality control" thing, and then turn around and complain about the stricter quality control thing?
No wonder customers are always right.
Foxconn: Sub-Saharan Africa!
I swear to God...I swear to God! That is NOT how you treat your human!
Maybe it's time to trade your oshkosh b'gosh for grown-up pants? You're a big kid now.
As opposed to 93-pocket cargo pants, which make people really look mature.
Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
Too much choice is actually bad. But hey. You're on a roll. Not going to stop you.
Non impediti ratione cogitationus.
I'm sure there are legitimate grist for CLW to chomp on but this just sounds like their usual bullshit.
upset at stricter quality control requirements with the iPhone 5
How are assembly line workers going to influence quality significantly after the fact of design freeze and production commencement?
Are they inserting the board upside down into the case?
This latest incident followed tighter rules to prevent tiny indentations on the phones and scratches to the phones' frames and back covers. The new iPhone 5 is said to be more susceptible to such markings.
Are you fuckin kidding me ITWORLD?
So the assembly line workers are now responsible for hardening plastic and steel alloying?
This might seem like a good idea at first although it ensures small companies don't enter the market. Brazilians can buy Apple- they can't buy ThinkPenguin laptops or a Raspberry Pi . It's screwed up that Brazil has ensured a monopoly / duopoly of the largest or largest players.
What they should do is only enforce this law on large companies or importers. That way there is no issue with small companies getting products to the Brazilian market. The way it is people in Brazil are being done a disservice.
Chinese robot (if the article is correct): $175/month.
Excuse moi.
Does the robot have to be "Chinese"?
Is the robot allowed to migrate to US of A and perhaps, get a "Green Card"?
Muchas Gracias, Señor Edward Snowden !
It's ironic that the one country in the world most in need of a Marxist revolution is "communist" China.
I don't know why the Chinese government even bothers with blocking anymore...
"Hey, did you hear about the Foxconn strikes? Do you think they're real?"
"Dunno, lemme check" *looks up Foxconn stirkes*
*search blocked*
"Yep, they're real"
The government's economic development plans for the region is to move up market into more advanced, higher valued, manufacturing and services. Part of the plan is to is to encourage more workers rights, higher wages, increased health-care, welfare, improved education, move the workforce up market, and help force low paid manufacturing out. Lower value manufacturing is now being encouraged to move the interior regions to lift the economy and incomes there. It's all well documented and written about. It should come as no surprise that there will be some labour issues in the southern coastal regions during the transition.
They're directing and regulating competitive market forces to achieve national growth. Milton Friedman probably wouldn't approve - but it's worked so far.
until morale improves.
I did not want any smartphones because of their size, however, took galaxy s3. Although it is kind of big, it also very very thin, and very very light so even when I carry it in front pant's pocket, I barely feel it.
Holding it could be a bit awkward, but big screen allows for big ass buttons, which makes interaction easier.
Battery life time sucks.
... China's version of the "47 percent", no doubt.
.. It says: "Made in China", now you.
--- I am known for the ones who want to find me on the net. Is that a privacy risk or a privilege? One might wonder..
Foxconn Denies Report of Unrest at iPhone Factory
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/07/business/foxconn-denies-report-of-unrest-at-iphone-factory.html?partner=yahoofinance&_r=0
actually less ethical companies are making China the better place.
China should take a cue from Harper's Conservative Canadian government and simply create a new law making it illegal for them to strike, then use the OMG for the sake of the greater good of our fragile economy to justify it.