Rotten Apple: Chinese Groups Call Out Company Over Workers’ Rights

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REUTERS/Robert Galraith

When you think about Apple being accused of ignoring safety conditions at its contractors’ factories, your shiny new iPhone may lose some luster.

In a report by over three dozen Chinese environmental groups posted on Thursday, 29 multinational companies were ranked by their response to health and safety concerns among their suppliers. Apple, known for being insular and often secretive, proved to be the least responsive.

(Read about how the iPhone may be hurting the American economy.)

It’s not the first time Apple has been called out on with its dealings with Chinese contractors. Last year, Apple underwent scrutiny when over a dozen people committed (or attempted to commit) suicide at Foxconn, a well-known Apple contractor. Jobs defended conditions at the factory, while Foxconn subsequently raised all workers’ pay by 30 percent, claiming it was unrelated. Coincidence?

Other contractors, such as Wintek Corp., has stated that workers have become sick due to chemical exposure in response to producing touch screens for Apple and other companies.

(Read about how the iPhone is changing the Chinese market.)

In contrast, among companies that were cited to be the most responsive were Compaq (owned by Hewlett-Packard) and Samsung. (via Yahoo)