Apple and Foxconn Dilemma

However, these activist groups are not very effective. Despite international organizations efforts to improve conditions, many of the conditions and practiced of Chinese factories go unnoticed and undocumented, in part due to unscrupulous record keeping on behalf of the factory, such as forging a falsified book of records to show inspectors. However, journalists and reporters have been successful in investigating and releasing articles, photographs, and video footage of the factory conditions, enlightening the world to the truth, hoping to gain public recognition of the illegal practices and garnering support to counter them.

The workers are needy for their approval, work extremely hard to avoid punishment, & and are to scared/dependent to quit/go on strike (Colleen: 119)

Both of these company’s stress the importance of human rights, minimum wages, and healthy workplaces for all employees. The Governments of these low wage countries try their best to ignore and disregard these conditions that are not normal. The benefits of these workers working under these conditions are too high and production is increasing in countries such as China and India.

The work conditions were unusually intolerable and would make a reasonable employee feel compelled to

There are two stakeholders in this situation and they are: the companies Apple and Foxconn as well as the Chinese government. Apple has obligations to their employees both domestic and global. They need to be mindful that a corporation is only as good as its products as well as, its image. They need to be mindful that since its headquarters are in the United States, it should do all that it can to maintain a positive image. It is also important to make sure that the products they sell are quality products while keeping the price as low as possible. Foxconn has a stake in its people and the products they export. The unfair and inhumane working conditions forced the government to step in. Foxconn also needs to be mindful of the issues presented previously for Apple (the difference they are headquartered in China). The fact that labor violations were taking place, China’s government had an obligations to its people. They need to protect their citizens from hazardous work conditions and hold Foxconn accountable for their actions.

Foxconn claims that it is compliant with local laws. But, research studies conducted by SACOM (Students & Scholars Against Corporate Misbehavior) have found that Foxconn has been a regular violator of labor laws. Many hidden facts as discussed below are uncovered.

Many companies set up a big factory in other countries. Apple has a Chinese factory that produces products for them. The people working there are getting very low

Foxconn is a company in China that is notorious for using slave labor to make electronic devices we use every day. The company is known for abundant labor violations and cruelties that turned many heads in different countries in the world. The unusual violations included ridiculous amounts of long hours, shorting pay people are owed, and restricted and conditions that many would equate to prison. There were numerous American companies under the microscope to improve conditions after being caught profiting off the slave labor from people “employed” at the facility. One of these companies was Apple. Foxconn is also notoriously known for manufacturing many other electronics, for other major companies.

The multi billion-dollar corporation, Apple Inc., designs and manufactures some of today’s highest technological gizmos and gadgets. Among their best known products are the Apple and Macintosh computers, iPods, iTunes, iPhones and iPads. Apple is one of the most powerful and influential high tech companies in the world. The success of Apple Inc. stems from the innovation and visions of co-founder and entrepreneur, Steve Jobs, the excellence of the stylish, user-friendly products, and the ability to create innovative products that consumer’s desire.

The Chinese government had enforced these rules and regulations through blocking, filtering and shutting down Internet cafes. According to Amnesty International, the Chinese government routinely blocks news sites, especially those with dissident views or banned groups. Anniversary’s such as the 1989 pro-democracy protests are heavily guarded days that see increase Internet blocking. Internet blocking of major search gateways is also

The Freedom of Speech is granted to every American citizen and has been since it was founded in 1776; however, not every nation grants that right. China, as a communist nation, retains most individual freedom rights from its citizens. Although in the Peoples Republic of China’s (PRC) 1982 constitution, people are guaranteed Freedom of Expression and Press; it is often violated by the current corrupt government. The government demands the news to be 80% positive and 20% negative, altering the facts n occasion. In contrast to that, America has recently become more involved with the pressing issue as well because of the involvement of Google. Thus it has shined the light on government censorship and corruption. China’s government corruption

China is one of our biggest labor competitors. The reason many US companies go to China for outsourcing is again, because of their workforce’s willingness to operate at low costs. Michael Zimmerman describes this as a disparity in worker “tolerance”. Where the low wages found in China are “far lower than U.S.

Companies such as Apple, Dell, HP, IBM, and Sony outsource labor and hardware manufacturing to a company called Foxconn Technology Group. Foxconn Technology Group is a multinational business anchored in Shenzhen, China. Some of the typical hardware being manufactured are, motherboards, chipsets, smartphones, tablets, and laptops. The majority of the factories are in China, three in Europe, one in India, and four in Mexico. Currently there are contracts to expand and build a new factory in Brazil. I believe that there are many ethical problems related to this example; first, the general idea of outsourcing mass amounts of labor, and secondly the mistreatment of

Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd which trades as Foxconn Technology group or as the media calls it Foxconn has been in media limelight recently due to labor problems that have surfaced from the organization. Foxconn is a major equipment manufacturer supplier to electronics giants like Blackberry, Apple, Microsoft Xbox, Sony PlayStation and the Nintendo Wii. The internet has several articles and controversies regarding the deplorable worker conditions and cases of suicides by the workers.

Apple Inc. is the most revered corporation of the USA, both in terms of brand equity and market capitalization. The company’s international competitive strategy is focused on the innovative product development, which Apple controls through its eight business segments: Portables, Desktops, iPads, iPhones, Music related products and services, peripherals and hardware (Lam et al. 2005).