Apple Grants ABC's 'Nightline' Access to Foxconn Factories in China

[thejadedmonkey]

No, it shows that Foxconn had to agree not to let just anyone into the factories to see information Apple didn't want leaked out. But Apple has told them that these people are okay and letting them in won't break the contract. That is all.

So foxconn is randomly asking Nightline to come tour? Somehow I doubt Foxconn would do that unless someone (aka Apple) asked specifically. Apple's the one with the power here, and it's abhorrent that they would take advantage of near-slave labor like this.

And yet thousands of people line up whenever they're hiring. Because they can't make wages like that anywhere else in their country.

Still doesn't make it right...

 

[Patrick J]

Are Apple also going to be responsible for the suffocating/stampede of the crowd when they get excited when the doors open?

 

[h00ligan]

You're all off base. Apple is working with the DOD. This is the beginning of the Chinese Spring. As Apple receives more "bad boy" articles they will continue to open access. China will not be able to prevent this.

As Foxconn workers continue to slowly earn more, and receive better living, and working conditions word will spread. Soon other workers will rise up and ask to be treated the same. China can only move assembly plants so far out in the country.

Eventually the masses will rise, and once destabilized enough will be invaded by Russia. Apple production will then move to Vladivostok where conditions will be determined by Bribes, and Kickbacks.

The Chinese will begin a new calendar, and raising hogs.

Lmao

Again. Different cultures have different standards. It's not our place to force our anything on another country.

 

[zep1977]

Are Apple also going to be responsible for the suffocating/stampede of the crowd when they get excited when the doors open?

Probably.

 

[jackc]

And yet thousands of people line up whenever they're hiring. Because they can't make wages like that anywhere else in their country.

Still doesn't make it right...

Why, because in a world that doesn't exist they could be making more?

The factory is making the workers better off, what have you done for them?

 

[flottenheimer]

Oh, for God's sake, quit it with the apocalyptic melodrama...

Word.

 

[arcite]

Lmao

Again. Different cultures have different standards. It's not our place to force our anything on another country.

Actually it is. Slowly but surely, the US will force democracy down the Chinese throats, their government will adapt for fail.

 

[h00ligan]

Actually it is. Slowly but surely, the US will force democracy down the Chinese throats, their government will adapt for fail.

It is our place to force democracy you're saying?

 

[larrybeo]

Those Suicide Nets Must Be Cheap!

With all this cash lying around, one would think Apple could actually improve work conditions rather than putting up suicide nets?

 

[G4DP]

This is a brilliant move by Apple if they can expose Foxconn for what it is.

This a great exposure of China manufacturing and how little control US Companies have over their HR/Environmental practices.

China refuses to allow US ownership of factories or land, or even to set labor policy in plants. This is a State Run society.

Apple can afford a bruise on it.

"I'll never see an Apple Chinese made product the same way again" said Weir

US companies have all the control they want, they decided to out source. Did the Chinese government hold them to ransom?

Thank you on the political lesson though. I doubt anyone on here knew about China being a communist state before.

The ignorance of this is staggering, as for Apple are doing this to improve conditions for all? You sir are sadly deluded.

All Apple Incorporated cares about is $$$$$$$$$ and more $. It's all they care about.

Actually it is. Slowly but surely, the US will force democracy down the Chinese throats, their government will adapt for fail.

And watch China call in it's US Debts. Only one Government would fall.

 

[SoGood]

1) Ignorance of a large section of the population in developed countries in knowing what it's like to survive in developing countries.
2) China bashing.

Ultimately, a stupid and meaningless subject matter.

 

[marksman]

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Must be a horrible place to work with thousands of people waiting outside hoping to get a job there

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Apple "grants" access to the facilities of an independent company. That phrase alone calls for extreme cynicism: I wonder if this was a similar setup like the Red Cross visits to certain Ghettos in the late 1930s in certain Easter European regions. The Red Cross wanted to be fooled and only got to see what they wanted to see: Happy faces on a nicely prepared stage. Nothing was real, but nobody cared.

But maybe there are still some journalists with the necessary ethics left in this world who are willing to look beyond the stage and report the inconvenient truth that they find.

Could be, but you can't really just walk into a private business and start taking pictures. You have to get permission first. Just like someone can't walk into your home and examine your belongings.

Yeah and I bet due to secrecy and such apple has agreements with Foxconn that limits who can visit the factories that make apple products. So it I'd totally reasonable apple would have to grant permission

 

[noisycats]

You're all off base. Apple is working with the DOD. This is the beginning of the Chinese Spring. As Apple receives more "bad boy" articles they will continue to open access. China will not be able to prevent this.

As Foxconn workers continue to slowly earn more, and receive better living, and working conditions word will spread. Soon other workers will rise up and ask to be treated the same. China can only move assembly plants so far out in the country.

Eventually the masses will rise, and once destabilized enough will be invaded by Russia. Apple production will then move to Vladivostok where conditions will be determined by Bribes, and Kickbacks.

The Chinese will begin a new calendar, and raising hogs.

So laughable...but then again...

 

[marksman]

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Wasn't Cook instrumental in bringing Apple to China?

Here's the scenario as I understand it.

Backing up for a moment, let me be clear I've been an Apple enthusiast & extremely loyal, happy customer since the first PowerBook 100 series debuted in 1991. So the only point being, I'm not bashing Apple. Just sharing my experience & perspective as someone who knows their Apple history well. I will only post my honest opinion (good or bad) depending on the topic.

To the point, it was Tim Cook under Steve Jobs direction that took them to China. A move I don't necessarily fault them for at the time, since everything they needed to fill demand for Apple products is there. It's also important to remember this was before they had the massive cash reserves of today.

Fast forward to the present. It's public record although rarely reported that after Cook had everything in place at Foxconn, Jobs flew over, had a sit down meeting & told Foxconn that he expected a 10% reduction in his costs each year if Foxconn wanted to keep Apple as a customer. This in addition the the incredibly low labor rate Jobs had already negotiated.

This is why I hold Apple accountable for SOME not All of the atrocities at Foxconn.

Finally, there's no better time than now, and no better man than Tim Cook to correct the issues & lead Apple forward. I have nothing but the highest regard for Tim Cook

Lol what atrocities? Highly paid jobs that include room and board are atrocities?

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Stupid. Does no none get how many thousands of dirt floor factories employing millions of workers there are throughout mainland China???

They work in 40c plus heat, for no wages other than food and board, in fact their dream is to be able to get a job at a factory like Foxconn.

Yes, I do know, our factory is just a few kilometers away from Foxconn. And, yes, our workers are VERY happy and well cared for, in fact I bonus them with money, iPhone4S's and iPads for good jobs done.

It's not that hard folks, I'm just a tiny tiny fish in the sea, owning a small business designing manufacturing consumer products with sales reaching near 10 million annually.

The amount of ******** written on the topic here and by the press such as the New York Times is beyond pathetic, proving the ignorance of a lot of people and the buying public.

If you're looking to find out about horrid working conditions look at companies that supply the Wal-marts of the world with textile products, or companies who do mold work for the auto industry, the freaking workers stand right in the molds!!! Bare skinned, toxic fumes they're burned all over their body and have a very short life expectancy because of their extreme exposure to toxins. When they make mistakes they're often disgraced in front of everyone and sadly also sometimes beaten.

So when you read about Apple and Foxconn, forget it, and if you have concerns for Chinese workers do a hell of a lot more research and you will be sickened by what you learn.

How the press isn't capable of finding this out is beyond beleif. Oh, but wait, finding out and uncovering the real truth of what workers endure in China doesn't matter. This campaign is designed to sell Newspapers and pick on the incredibly popular and succesful Apple.

Anyone else with manufacturing experience in China care to chime in? In another thread there was a good number of people who had experience there and helped set the record straight.

What a misleading world we live in.

I think you are right on the money that this is all based on old guard dying media trying to ride coattails on apples massive popularity.

If these journalists want to uncover abuse then go to where the real problems are... But then they can't get to ride on apples name.

It would be like doing a story on nursing home abuse and going to Augusta Country Club and showing how the older members can only use the sauna five days a week.

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This is the part where you provide links to the "public record". Otherwise, some of us might take it as rumor and innuendo.

Nice try, buy I don't capture every link to every article I read on the net.

Secondly I don't have any desire to "prove anything".

Don't believe it? I couldn't care less.

So most of what you said was made up. Most of us knew that bug thanks for confirming it.

 

[marksman]

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Were Foxconn employees making Microsoft's XBOX threatening to jump from the roof a few weeks back? Strange that went unreported.

Of course it was reported. Under the headline "workers at Apple factory threaten mass suicide".

However, the most important thing about this was that these workers didn't protest about working conditions. They were protesting about losing their jobs.

The simple fact that it's "Apple" granting access, and not "Foxcon", shows that Apple is really in charge, they're just using a different name. Anyone who misses this and wonders "Why the outrage against Apple, it's foxcon's factory", should remember this.

_If_ that was what happened. The actual line in the article is "Apple has given "Nightline" anchor Bill Weir exclusive access to their suppliers' factories in China". Which is quite obviously factually wrong, because right now there are audits going on at Foxconn, so whatever access Bill Weir has is not exclusive. If one part of the sentence is wrong, then we cannot trust the second part. It is an unfortunate fact today that reporters cannot string a single sentence together anymore without making factual errors and misleading statements.

Can't be true. Why would a slave who is treated like a rat protest to losing their slave job?

 

[petsounds]

f you want to be fair about it he's taking the heat for a problem China has created, and China alone can fix.

Actually, no…there's a fairly straightforward solution: lobby your country's government to enact measures to encourage local manufacturing. WE -- as in, comparatively affluent non-Chinese -- created this problem by incentivizing corporations to send their manufacturing to a Communist regime with an abysmal human rights record.

 

[sishaw]

The optimistic viewpoint

Apple is, perhaps, one of the few companies with the financial clout to make Foxconn reform its labor practices, which could very well work in Apple's favor in the US and other markets. Apple could advertise not only great devices, but responsible manufacturing.

 

[marksman]

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Jobs hated the power of unions.

Unions had their place in us history but are long past their usefulness.

Unions destroyed the automotive and airline industries and are a massive albatross around the neck of our education system and at one time seriously threatened the viability of our telecommunications infrastructure.

While one might say unions would be beneficial to china now, the long term consequences outweigh the short term gains.

So even if we want to see labor conditions improve in places like china unions are not the way to go. We see the long term consequences of unions and they are disastrous.

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Working at Apple isn't the issue. Jobs' widow/estate is still a major Apple and Disney stockholder. His shares didn't evaporate into nothingness. The widow/estate has a deeply vested stake in seeing Apple's share price stay high and continue to climb. To label this as "independent" is loopy.

That Apple took point on getting rid of the "Steve Jobs likeness" dolls is also demonstrative that the window/estate and Apple are not exactly independent either.

Jobs had 7.7% of Disney. That does not equal a controlling interest. Your assertion of Job's widow's "deeply vested" interest is laughable, as she has more money outside Disney than she can ever spend.

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Are Apple also going to be responsible for the suffocating/stampede of the crowd when they get excited when the doors open?

"apple responsible as 100s of Chinese are trampled trying to get a job at a factory making apple products"

 

[AidenShaw]

So most of what you said was made up. Most of us knew that bug thanks for confirming it.

Great typo - do you think that a patch is available?

 

[nostresshere]

Some of logic expressed by folks almost makes me sick.

They offer a great job.

Thousands and thousands fight to get a job there.

If Apple pulled out of China and put a few hundred thousand out of work, there many countries that would love to have the business.

Stop with all the complaining. Geez.

 

[mccldwll]

Nice try, buy I don't capture every link to every article I read on the net.

Secondly I don't have any desire to "prove anything".

Don't believe it? I couldn't care less.

So.....you read it somewhere on the net but don't know where? And, you state it's common knowledge, but can't find a link? And, you think people should believe you, but don't care......?
That's funny.

 

[stylinexpat]

In the US when people go to a restaurant the people are expected to pay a 20% tip to the person who served them and if the person does not pay a tip he is considered cheap even though he already paid for what he ordered so why does Apple not pay the Chinese a 20% tip for them low paid workers? Hypocrisy

 

[linuxcooldude]

In the US when people go to a restaurant the people are expected to pay a 20% tip to the person who served them and if the person does not pay a tip he is considered cheap even though he already paid for what he ordered so why does Apple not pay the Chinese a 20% tip for them low paid workers? Hypocrisy

Because Foxconns the one who needs to pay this "Tip". Apple cannot pay the worker directly. Even if Apple gives Foxconn the extra 20%, who's to say that 20% ever makes it to the worker. Besides, Foxconn recently gave pay raises to its workers so no tip needed.

 

[stylinexpat]

Because Foxconns the one who needs to pay this "Tip". Apple cannot pay the worker directly. Even if Apple gives Foxconn the extra 20%, who's to say that 20% ever makes it to the worker. Besides, Foxconn recently gave pay raises to its workers so no tip needed.

Why can we pay employees an extra 20% tip at restaurants in the US Apple can send money as a tip towards the employees as a tip. There is no law banning tips to employees in China that I am aware of. Bottom line is Apple does not share profits with shareholders so they do not pay dividends and neither pay tips to the employees that manufacture their products for them. If Apple were to hire and employ people to manufacture these products in the US, what do you reckon the minimum wage would be for each person at the assembly line? How much in taxes and insurance for each person? Last but not least forget the amount of endless lawsuits from employees as we all know Americans love to file lawsuits

So at restaurants in the US we have to pay these waiters an extra 20% because they are under paid by the restaurant owner but in China Apple does not have to pay the employees an extra 20% because they are way under paid

 

[Gasu E.]

It's public record although rarely reported that after Cook had everything in place at Foxconn, Jobs flew over, had a sit down meeting & told Foxconn that he expected a 10% reduction in his costs each year if Foxconn wanted to keep Apple as a customer. This in addition the the incredibly low labor rate Jobs had already negotiated.

This is why I hold Apple accountable for SOME not All of the atrocities at Foxconn.

You're claiming that a private business conversation between Steve Jobs and Foxconn executives is "public record"??? Do you have any notion of how business partnerships work, about business confidentiality, non-disclosure agreements, etc? How the heck could this possibly be in the "public record"? What specific "public record" could capture this?