Foxconn Pledges to Ease Up on Factory Workers

Electronics manufacturer Foxconn has taken some considerable hits to its public image in recent years as reports about shocking labor conditions at the Apple supplier’s factories cropped up with more frequency than new iPad product launches. On Sunday, Foxconn’s chairman said that the company is changing its ways. –KA

CNET:

Speaking at the 2012 Boao Forum for Asia in China, chairman Terry Gou told Reuters yesterday that “we are saying now in the company, ‘you work fewer hours, but get more pay.’ We won’t stop here and will continue to increase salaries.”

Gou was reacting to questions over last week’s audit from the Fair Labor Association that uncovered a number of violations at three Foxconn factories in China.

In just its initial report, the FLA found that Foxconn workers were putting in more than 60 hours per week, while many were working seven days a week without a day off. The report also discovered that workers were not being fairly compensated for overtime or even for the cost of living in Shenzhen and Chengu where the factories are located.

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