Foxconn Workers Reportedly Strike over iPhone 5 Quality Control Demands

[kas23]

no wonder they get scratches!! The line workers keep throwing them around

It takes a certain skill set not to throw the casings around. They apparently need to be trained not to do so.

And this "striking" business sounds an aweful lot like a union of some sort. Doesn't bode well for China. They better crack down on this ASAP.

 

[charlituna]

We take our devices way too seriously. The Foxconn employees are not useless, lazy slobs. Lemons are commonplace in every market, and honestly- a few tiny scuffs are NOT A BIG DEAL. These are fellow human beings we are talking about.

I saw a good couple dozen shipped iPhones that had zero issues that first day. And I don'tknow of anyone that got a messed up one. so the quality is possible based on the training they had or didn't have for launch day production

Something about this feels off to me. Im not sure if I believe that this strike happened at all or was about the iPhone or anything Apple did or said. Given the source (a labor watchdog 'reporting' via a known anti Apple site) I am not convinced there isn't something else going on here. Name dropping Apple gets attention in the press. Perhaps this strike was all about the holiday issue, in several of the lines, and they are only talking about the Apple person to make it seem like something else is going on

 

[zone23]

Yep its all our faults that China is over populated and life just down right seems to suck for them. Shame on us for wanting some kind of quality control because after all its not going in a happy meal box, am I right? Most of the stuff coming from China is junk and all they do is cost Americans jobs by constantly undercutting the American dollar. Feel sorry for them? I'm not sure sounds like they are lucky to have such a great job and should take it up with their government. We would certainly well Foxconn here. If any of you have ever worked at a factory (and I have) you would know that when something is in high demand you end up working overtime. Its a fact of life. Those of you who haven't worked at a factory well you have no clue what its like. You probably see it as slavery or something and in a way yes we slave over your product so YOU can have them. Once demand goes down you go back to normal shifts. Thats life at a factory.

 

[bob24]

Are you willing to pay $1200 for your Iphone? Is there anywhere in the U.S capable of providing hundreds of thousands of workers to assembly the phone to meets the huge demands? Are American workers willing to work overtime all year round?

If the answers are yes for all those questions, then ...

I think you are asking the wrong questions through ...

20-30 years ago, there was mass production to meet consumers demand at prices people could afford - and things were not produced in China.

Of course you are right that if you try to reproduce in the US the Chinese model of just having one or 2 factories predicting iPhones for the whole world, it wouldn't work.

But what about a few factories in Americas, a few in Europe, and a few in Asia? That would certainly meet the demand, and it would be healthier for the world economy.

 

[kas23]

The iFactory TV tour of Foxconn said that the workers got $1.75 an hour for a 60 hour work week.

But didn't they complain when the amount of hours worked per week were limited, thus decreasing the amount of overtime hours they could work? Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

 

[Rogifan]

You know if it bothers people so much stop buying iPhones and other Apple products. If it really bothers you that much and you want to make a statement do it with your wallet.

 

[blackhand1001]

I gotta agree with the workers. I experienced first hand in the store how easy these things are to scratch. Its not the workers, its apples design.

 

[Medic311]

Why???

Why are people defending Apple for making 100% of its products in foreign countries yet we criticize GM and Ford for making 60%-70% of their vehicles in Canada and Mexico?

Why have we allowed corporations to make electronics synonymous with cheap Chinese labor? Some blame the consumer, but we only have the choice to buy what is being sold. Corporations used out sourcing to boost profits and have become addicted to the high profit margins. I can't blame them, if you were making more money wouldn't you continue what you were doing as well?

Guess where most electronics were made in the USA in the mid 1950's? At the RCA factory in Camden, NJ. Look what happened to the city when manufacturing was moved to Japan and other parts of Asia. This is happening all over our country and people are actually sitting here in this forum defending the elimination of jobs and exports? Use your brain people...if you think you're immune to outsourcing, think again. The "it won't happen to me" attitude no longer applies.

So what if labor costs more money in this country, the costs of manufacturing stay within this country which is actually good for the economy. Paying a worker $15/hr to make an iPhone so that he is then able to purchase an iPhone has thus expanded your customer base. Paying someone in China $1.50/hr results in no additional sales for your company. Apple could take a hit on profit margin, if it could increase sales which it would by making phones in this country and paying its workers a wage that allowed them to buy Apple products.

People called Henry Ford an idiot for this kind of business practice, and look how that turned out. The rest is history...but let us not look back on this era as a missed opportunity

 

[dennislaska]

"According to the report, Apple and Foxconn had raised quality control standards to address issues related to scratching and other blemishes on the iPhone 5 casing"

I thought all the "certain"fan boys said there was no issue with the scratching??

Apple seems to disagree.And FYI I'm a regular Apple fan boy

See the 900 posts in the other threads about black iphone 5 scratching

 

[mori39]

Yep its all our faults that China is over populated and life just down right seems to suck for them. Shame on us for wanting some kind of quality control because after all its not going in a happy meal box, am I right? Most of the stuff coming from China is junk and all they do is cost Americans jobs by constantly undercutting the American dollar. Feel sorry for them? I'm not sure sounds like they are lucky to have such a great job and should take it up with their government. We would certainly well Foxconn here. If any of you have ever worked at a factory (and I have) you would know that when something is in high demand you end up working overtime. Its a fact of life. Those of you who haven't worked at a factory well you have no clue what its like. You probably see it as slavery or something and in a way yes we slave over your product so YOU can have them. Once demand goes down you go back to normal shifts. Thats life at a factory.

So it seems you have once worked in a factory in a devoloping country...?

The person who has no clue is actually you...

 

[bob24]

Liar. Apple doesn't employ these people. They pay a company which employs these people. Do you blame the supermarket because they order fruit from a farm where people make less than you think is fair to keep your price at the register down?

So as long as they don't employ them directly, they have no responsibility whatsoever? If they where paying a company using slaves to manufacture the phones you would think there is no issue from Apple's side?

 

[SatManager]

You're joking right? Cause bringing in scabs will only make the quality even worse. Read the underlying issues:

1. Improper Equipment
2. Inadequate training to fulfill their goals
3. Holidays taken away for the long weekend

I say they have a good reason to strike

And these same issues can be applied to the US Military in some circumstances!

 

[JHankwitz]

We take our devices way too seriously. The Foxconn employees are not useless, lazy slobs. Lemons are commonplace in every market, and honestly- a few tiny scuffs are NOT A BIG DEAL. These are fellow human beings we are talking about.

So, what you're saying is that you would have no problem with a scratched surface on your new $600 iPhone right out of the box?

Lemons are not commonplace in every market. It may be acceptable at the Dollar Store, but not in Apple's market.

 

[Sony311]

Training: is there a fault on the assembly line somewhere? If so, why? Is there a step that involves something that causes the scratching? If so, is it human error or assembly line machinery. If machinery, why? Is the person running the machinery doing something different than the person previous to him? maybe? See training.

I have to disagree. How much training and managerial support does one need to use their eyes and say "this is scratched"? I mean, honestly now. These aren't internals. These are visually damaged casings, and people who pay premium dollars for products expect to get nothing less than what they paid for.

 

[pcmodderz]

These are Apple products. Apple has vendor responsibilities. Apple is also dictating the QA. To discount Apple as having zero responsibility here is extremely passive.

You sir have lost sight to the issue and clearly are misunderstood. Apple does not manufactured these products. If you read on the back of any Apple device, it clearly states "Designed by Apple in California and Assembled in China." The is a clear sign this is not Apple's problem. It IS however you look at FOXCONN's problem. Last time I checked Apple does not have factory workers on their payroll. Yes, Apple has ever right to dictate the QA. They design it and put their logo on it. What Apple should be doing right now is chewing FOXCONN's ass in every way possible(Just like their development team for Maps). Apple is not at fault for this in any way. Apple being a vendor has nothing to do with this. They have filled their legal responsibility.

 

[DanteMann]

wow, I am not surprised at this. For a company that has hundreds of billions of dollars, you think they could treat their employees with a little respect. I have no doubt these poor workers are treated like stray dogs.

 

[macuserx86]

Not really a big fan of the tone of some of these comments.
Workers' health and well being is more important than ship date, always.

 

[chris.robison]

I love Mac Rumors, but it is getting a little too sensationalist for me. It seems that so many internet iPhone problems originate here. I absolutely do not believe that scuffing is a problem, but MR definitely seems to be trying to make it one and stir crap up.

 

[pubwvj]

Time to bring in the robots.

 

[nsfw]

My new phone had a scratch near the sim tray slot. Looks like from the sim tray poker tool. I thought about exchanging it and then realized this thing is going to be so scratched up after two years anyways.
Does the SIM get installed and provisioned in China?
Any chance Apple adjusted the finish on the black phone after the first wave hit consumers with complaints?

 

[kas23]

You know if it bothers people so much stop buying iPhones and other Apple products. If it really bothers you that much and you want to make a statement do it with your wallet.

“He does not believe that does not live according to his belief.”

- Sigmund Freud

 

[pcmodderz]

Wow, and you americans keep wondering why you're so hated by the rest of the world. Some of you people are just sickening, greedy and, dare i say it, plain dumb.

That is the pot calling the kettle black. Take a look at some of your post on the 5 coming out.... I guess in Belgium you don't have standards.... Except with beer. Beer you have standards...

 

[tigres]

If you build it....

Take a large existing factory in the US, pick 3 regions to make it fair.
Retro fit them to produce iDevices.

Call every man woman and Unemployed grad from East to West. This nation needs technical training, were hemorrhaging jobs to overseas.
Bring em in, train them, teach them, honor them, respect them.

Want a job? Here is the pay X
When your skill set improves, you move up to Y- on and on.

If we can overcome during war, we can certainly employ, feed, and put our people to work- AND keep profitable. Building iDevices is nothing compared to what this nation has done.

I am so sick of the almighty dollar-

 

[iGrip]

Sensationalist, much? Have you ever been to China? Some nationals would be quite offended by your generalizations of the country. From what I remember, their work quarters don't qualify as any of the above, and neither do the local towns. Furthermore, the company housing is remnants of the Iron Ricebowl -- people want to live there because its cheap. The cost of living is China is much lower than the US, so long as you're not consuming western "imports" (brands).

Maybe I'm wrong. The floors seem to not be made of dirt, at least here.

 

[robanga]

My new phone had a scratch near the sim tray slot. Looks like from the sim tray poker tool. I thought about exchanging it and then realized this thing is going to be so scratched up after two years anyways.
Does the SIM get installed and provisioned in China?
Any chance Apple adjusted the finish on the black phone after the first wave hit consumers with complaints?

Yes. I would bet the sim is installed at the factory.