Obviously we can only speculate right now, but it's possibly a tragic loss through work related pressure.
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Foxconn Employee Reportedly Commits Suicide Over Lost iPhone Prototype
- Thread starter Ntombi
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If it is true that the boy committed suicide because of unlawful actions by Foxconn, Apple has a moral duty to change assembler partner. If the news from chinese media were confirmed and Apple still do business with that company, they will have lost a customer.
I get your sentiment, but no .....
People in the U.S. *do* often need to take their jobs more seriously, but that's not what we're talking about here at all. We don't have all the facts, but it sure sounds like one of these prototype phones was stolen (maybe after this guy accidentally left it sitting someplace on the shop floor he shouldn't have left it). From what I read, he apparently realized pretty quickly it was missing, assumed he must have misplaced it, but eventually realized someone else took the thing. So he did the responsible thing and reported it missing.
This SHOULD have resulted in the company thanking him for his honesty and cooperation in the matter, while they did their part to find out who stole the phone. (If it really disappeared in his workplace, then it was apparently another employee of the company who stole it.)
Instead, it appears they harassed him, illegally searching his home and so forth -- which is NOT the way I'd want to see anything like this handled here in the USA. At most, you might fire the guy for "negligence", if you really thought his behavior in leaving the phone sitting unattended warranted it. But I'd argue it's the *employer* who shares the responsibility of securing prototype/secret devices. "Personal responsibility" only goes so far. That's why every place I know that has their employees handle "classified" information has a whole system in place to ensure it doesn't make it out the door without their knowledge. (Employees have to open their briefcases and show a guard the contents of any boxes they carry outside the gate, etc.) People always think such things are done simply because companies don't TRUST their employees. But they're also done to prevent honest people from getting framed for things beyond their control! (If I left with my briefcase and that evening, someone reported a sensitive document missing - I'd be really *happy* someone else looked and made sure that document wasn't in my belongings before I left for the day!)
People in the U.S. *do* often need to take their jobs more seriously, but that's not what we're talking about here at all. We don't have all the facts, but it sure sounds like one of these prototype phones was stolen (maybe after this guy accidentally left it sitting someplace on the shop floor he shouldn't have left it). From what I read, he apparently realized pretty quickly it was missing, assumed he must have misplaced it, but eventually realized someone else took the thing. So he did the responsible thing and reported it missing.
This SHOULD have resulted in the company thanking him for his honesty and cooperation in the matter, while they did their part to find out who stole the phone. (If it really disappeared in his workplace, then it was apparently another employee of the company who stole it.)
Instead, it appears they harassed him, illegally searching his home and so forth -- which is NOT the way I'd want to see anything like this handled here in the USA. At most, you might fire the guy for "negligence", if you really thought his behavior in leaving the phone sitting unattended warranted it. But I'd argue it's the *employer* who shares the responsibility of securing prototype/secret devices. "Personal responsibility" only goes so far. That's why every place I know that has their employees handle "classified" information has a whole system in place to ensure it doesn't make it out the door without their knowledge. (Employees have to open their briefcases and show a guard the contents of any boxes they carry outside the gate, etc.) People always think such things are done simply because companies don't TRUST their employees. But they're also done to prevent honest people from getting framed for things beyond their control! (If I left with my briefcase and that evening, someone reported a sensitive document missing - I'd be really *happy* someone else looked and made sure that document wasn't in my belongings before I left for the day!)
For better of worse MR seems to have attracted as set of zealots on the extreme sides of the spectrum. For those who are anti-Apple/Mac it is a "positive" since it furthers the core cause of what they are fixated upon.
[ those are matched with the folks who insist have to always say positive things about Apple/Mac beause this is Mac board. As if this was primarily a game as to which side has the best propaganda. ]
You'd have a similar factor if there was a story about how Apple had grossly overcharged consumers on some product. There would be a folks who marked that as positiive. (whether they are in the "Apple can do no wrong" camp or "I own the stock, I don't buy the stuff" camp would be open to question. )
It is a positive/negative as to aligns with the individual's word views. Some people's world views are quite self centered. There are more than a few folks out there with the extreme "the world is a jungle. I got mine , you get yours" view.
some of these are gallows humor. It is a tense story and jokes crack tension.
It isn't solely a quality of dumb or not know what the story is about.
Gallows humor tends to work better with folks who know you over a broader set of conditions for. So yeah it will flop, for the most part, in a forum like this.
They'll do nothing of the sort. Nor should they. Nothing really to do with them. This was an internal matter within Foxconn and their security protocols. Apple's only involvement will only be if they are asked to provide a statement if the family of Foxconn's now-deceased employee pursues a criminal and/or civil legal suit against Foxconn.
Awful thing to happen, but think it says more about the blame culture and cultural differences present (the loss of face/shame that drove Foxconn Security to push this guy over the edge - figuratively not literally - and his own shame at having lost the prototype and potentially his job) than any Machiavellian plot and Apple-sanctioned ninja operatives.
Shame there's no mention of what the prototype featured. Ok ok, just joking.
They did --->[Update: Apple has confirmed the incident, giving the following statement to reporters: "We are saddened by the tragic loss of this young employee, and we are awaiting results of the investigations into his death. We require our suppliers to treat all workers with dignity and respect."]
I think over there when you screw up like that you might become blacklisted and basically your career is over. Very brutal.
Here, you have options. A much less stressful labor scene, but then again a much less secure (I know-tell me about it )
Anyway, it's sad that Apple (and tangentially all of us) have anything to do with this.
Here, you have options. A much less stressful labor scene, but then again a much less secure (I know-tell me about it
)Anyway, it's sad that Apple (and tangentially all of us) have anything to do with this.
Um, if a camera caught him jumping out the window, wouldn't cameras have caught the alleged beat down?
16 new prototypes for when?
Always sad to see a needless loss of life ...
What is interesting though is why are there 16 new prototypes handed around in mid July?
Assuming Apple won't release another iPhone until June 2010 it seems strange to have that many new prototypes so soon. No?
For a release that far into the future I'd have expected maybe one or two prototypes just for initial testing. But 16?
- Could this mean that it is likely we will see another iPhone model this year?
- Or a new iPhone by next January?
Always sad to see a needless loss of life ...
What is interesting though is why are there 16 new prototypes handed around in mid July?
Assuming Apple won't release another iPhone until June 2010 it seems strange to have that many new prototypes so soon. No?
For a release that far into the future I'd have expected maybe one or two prototypes just for initial testing. But 16?
- Could this mean that it is likely we will see another iPhone model this year?
- Or a new iPhone by next January?
I doubt the cameras were inside of his apartment. they probably were outside and only saw the after-effect of him being thrown out the window
Unfortunately, this is a direct result of Apples uber secrecy and there business dealing in a country where anything goes. Guarantee you he was murdered.
I found a translation from Chinese here:
http://translate.google.com/transla...=1&q=富士康员工跳楼自杀&sl=zh-CN&tl=en&history_state0=
A bit hard to read, but you get some idea, and you can figure out what our brave reporter Eric Eldon has added himself.
Sixteen iPhones were put into a box. Next day they were counted and everything was fine. Then they were counted again, and one iPhone was missing. From the Eldon article it sounded as if Sun had "lost" a phone - he hadn't. Someone must have taken the phone. It looks like Sun looked for the phone in the factory without success and reported the loss only days later.
The reports of his ill-treatment seem to have a post on a chinese forum as their only source. I can't see chinese forum posts being a much more reliable source than say MacRumors, so it seems that to some Apple is guilty to murder because some bloke posted something on a chinese website.
There has been security footage of moments before his suicide. There is especially footage of him in a lift (with no mention whether he was alone or in company), and apparently he left the lift, went to a window, and jumped. On sites like Slashdot the existence of this footage alone is apparently proof of murder, specifically taken to proof that it was suicide (I don't quite get the logic).
Apart from the fact that it was an iPhone that was lost, and that Apple wasn't happy about getting 15 prototypes instead of 16, the chinese article has no mention whatsoever of any Apple involvement. That was added when the Google translation was transformed into proper English by Eric Eldon.
The cameras were in the lift. He entered the building, went into the lift, went up to the twelfth floor, left the lift, opened a window and jumped. We haven't seen the footage, but the police will be able to figure out how many people were in the lift.
The security people say that Yong Sun Dan himself suggested to search his apartment. And since his girlfriend was in the apartment, they sent two men and one woman to search it. And as I said, "some reports" seem to be random posts on Chinese internet forums. It is strange how these stories change. It started with "they searched his apartment" to "they searched his apartment, which might be illegal", to "they illegally searched his apartment".
Did you actually read any of this?
http://translate.google.com/transla...=1&q=富士康员工跳楼自杀&sl=zh-CN&tl=en&history_state0=
A bit hard to read, but you get some idea, and you can figure out what our brave reporter Eric Eldon has added himself.
Sixteen iPhones were put into a box. Next day they were counted and everything was fine. Then they were counted again, and one iPhone was missing. From the Eldon article it sounded as if Sun had "lost" a phone - he hadn't. Someone must have taken the phone. It looks like Sun looked for the phone in the factory without success and reported the loss only days later.
The reports of his ill-treatment seem to have a post on a chinese forum as their only source. I can't see chinese forum posts being a much more reliable source than say MacRumors, so it seems that to some Apple is guilty to murder because some bloke posted something on a chinese website.
There has been security footage of moments before his suicide. There is especially footage of him in a lift (with no mention whether he was alone or in company), and apparently he left the lift, went to a window, and jumped. On sites like Slashdot the existence of this footage alone is apparently proof of murder, specifically taken to proof that it was suicide (I don't quite get the logic).
Apart from the fact that it was an iPhone that was lost, and that Apple wasn't happy about getting 15 prototypes instead of 16, the chinese article has no mention whatsoever of any Apple involvement. That was added when the Google translation was transformed into proper English by Eric Eldon.
The cameras were in the lift. He entered the building, went into the lift, went up to the twelfth floor, left the lift, opened a window and jumped. We haven't seen the footage, but the police will be able to figure out how many people were in the lift.
The security people say that Yong Sun Dan himself suggested to search his apartment. And since his girlfriend was in the apartment, they sent two men and one woman to search it. And as I said, "some reports" seem to be random posts on Chinese internet forums. It is strange how these stories change. It started with "they searched his apartment" to "they searched his apartment, which might be illegal", to "they illegally searched his apartment".
Did you actually read any of this?
Nobody is blaming Apple this is just how business runs in China. You deal with the devil you get paid in flames.
With Apple's billions in cashed stash, why don't they really try and "Think Different" and produce the phones in America, where their parent country could use the investment.
I don't think many American workers would freak out as badly at the threat of hired goons, or that the company would send hired goons in the first place.
That said, more employees would probably die of cholesterol overdose per year...
Because Apple doesn't think different. Apple is just like Microsoft its all about money to them. Thats why they have extreme margins using virtually all the same parts found in bargain bin PC's. The only thing that makes Apple so much better is an intuitive Operating System. Without that Apple would be just another Alienware. OSX makes the Apple computing experience what it is. I think Apple is treading dangerous waters. They are getting to top heavy and all those Fan Boys are to blind to see that Apple is just a Hippy version of MS.
