Mike Daisey's alleged Foxconn fabrications

For those of you who have been following the Apple/Foxconn story, you will be aware of  Mike Daisey's acclaimed one-man show "The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs," in which he talks about visiting a factory in China that makes iPhones and other Apple products. This American Life show on NPR has issued a retraction because they can't vouch for its truth. He allegedly made up parts of his story, namely child labor, armed guards, chemical injuries etc.
Here's a link to the NPR retraction and interview with Mike Daisey. In the 3rd section, they interview the reporter from the NYT who describes what they actually found and also some of the statements made by Apple executives. There is a large part of the story that is not getting any airtime, and that has to do with why they, and many other companies, are working so much overtime in the first place.
I wrote to Ira Glass. See below;

Dear Ira,

I’d like to add some info that the NY Times team and Apple have not covered. I didn’t hear anyone discuss the reasons why so much overtime is being worked in the first place. In many cases, the buying practices of these companies are not compatible with corporate codes of conduct. Without getting to the root cause of these long term code violations, it will be impossible to correct or enforce. Faced with the need to meet a customer’s delivery and margin expectations, and also meet code provisions (60 hours), most factories falsify the records. Overtime and minimum wage violations are common, and never really go away. Why? Because in many cases, our corporate culture and business practices are at the root of it. Companies turn a blind eye to this as long as the factory has some improvements and is seen as willing to engage in continuous improvement. The factories know this and “play the game”, without ever addressing the long term issues.

One of the executives at Apple was quoted as saying if Apple wanted to, Apple could enforce codes of conduct and the factory would do it. This is not true. Unless they address their own business practices to make sure they are compatible with their own code of conduct, their factories will continue to be out of compliance.

Here’s a link to an article I wrote back in 2004. http://www.allbusiness.com/manufacturing/apparel-other-finished-products-made/4397949-1.html

As you can see, this is still not being taken seriously, except by a small number of brands, such as Nike, Gap. You can read their efforts to address this in their annual CSR reports.

Apple should know better.

Wally

Recent Article from the Brtish press

One of two reports surfacing from the UK this week. This is disturbing for 2 reasons.

1/ How did BHS not know that this factory may be of higher risk. Many factories where the management is not of the same nationality as the workers can, and do have problems with worker/supervisor relations.
2/ The requirement for suppliers to show they have a process for following the client's code of conduct would appear to be non existant.

Do you know what is happening in your supply chain? If you don't, this might be a report on one of your factories.

Get involved.

[Daily Mail] BHS knitwear is made by 'beaten and humiliated Bangladeshi sweatshop workers who are paid 10p an hour'

Daily Mail  |  March 14, 2012  |  Share  |  Source article

A high street chain is selling clothes made by sweatshop 'slaves' who are paid just 10p per hour, a report claims.
Workers making knitwear for Bhs are regularly beaten, threatened, stripped of their rights and imprisoned on false charges, according to workers' rights investigators.
The Philip Green-owned department store chain is among a string of brands who have items produced at the Chinese-owned Rosita and Megatex factories in the North Bengal region of Bangladesh.
Investigators say that the factories' thousands of workers toil seven-day, 84-hour work weeks in conditions where every Bangladeshi labour law is routinely and systematically violated.
Now BHS, owned by billionaire fashion tycoon Sir Philip Green, has been called on to intervene.
The High Street giant, which sells its knitwear for between £15 and £35, boasts in its code of conduct: 'When customers buy our goods we want them to be confident that they have been produced under acceptable conditions.'
Last night a spokesman for BHS told The Sun the company was 'urgently' investigating with a supplier who had used the factories.
'It appears there have been a number of violations of our code,' the spokesman said.
Five thousand Bengali workers toil under Chinese management at the two factories, in conditions that a report by the Institute for Global Labour and Human Rights likens to a 'minimum security prison'.
During peak season - when overtime is mandatory - shifts last a gruelling 13 hours, from from 8am to 9pm, six days a week.
On Fridays, supposedly the workers' day off, there is a further six-hour shift from 7am to 1pm, meaning staff are routinely at the factory 84 hours a week.
According to the report, most knitters are on their feet for the entire duration of their shifts.
Corporal punishment is common at the factories, with workers who arrive late forced to stand to attention for at least for hours, without talking, turning their heads or even going to the bathroom.
In one shocking case, a woman who complained that a supervisor was pestering her for sex claimed she was then targeted for a savage beating by two other senior staff members.
Workers smuggled out labels to prove that they were making clothes for BHS and other major fashion companies worldwide.
BHS parent company Arcadia, which also owns Burton, Top Shop and Dorothy Perkins made profits of £190.4million last year.
The Bengali factory workers 10p pay means it would take 320 hours' labour to earn enough money for a £32 'multi-stitch' jumper from BHS's Olive and Olivia range.
Charles Kernaghan, director of the Institute for Global Labour and Human Rights, said: 'The Chinese-owned Rosita and Megatex plants routinely and systematically violate every labour law in Bangladesh as well as the International Labor Organization's core internationally recognised worker rights standards.
'Under Chinese management, the factories are operated like minimum security prisons. Under such circumstances, the workers are trapped.'
He added: 'The international labels must immediately intervene to end the gross violations and restore the rule of law.'

Update on the violence in Cambodia

Here's an article from Just Style, written by Leonie Barrie.

It would have been nice to see some kind of message from the Brands and Retailers to the effect that they would be willing to address the root cause of low wages and overtime, as well as putting pressure on the government. A little bit of introspection here wouldn't go amiss.

Just sayin'.

 

CAMBODIA: Apparel coalition calls for end to violent unrest

Author: Leonie Barrie | 12 March 2012

Brands and retailers including Puma, H&M, Gap Inc, Columbia Sportswear, American Eagle Outfitters, The Jones Group, Warnaco Inc and Lululemon Athletica have joined a coalition of industry groups calling for an end to the violent unrest that continues to plague Cambodia's garment sector.
Their action has been prompted by an incident in the Manhattan Special Economic Zone (SEZ) last month, where three female workers at Puma supplier Kaoway Sports Ltd were shot and injured, and products and facilities of Kaoway, Kingmaker and Sheico were damaged by demonstrators.
A letter sent last week to Cambodia's Minister of Commerce, HE Cham Prasidh, urges the government to conduct a "full and transparent investigation into the recent activities."
"We hope the government will redouble efforts to create a safe and stable environment for workers and businesses in the country," add the groups, which include the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA), along with the Fair Labor Association (FLA), and the Ethical Trading Initiative.
"We had hoped that the agreements set out by the local authority were satisfactory enough for all parties to settle their differences and begin to rebuild industrial peace.
"We respectfully urge the Royal Government of Cambodia to conduct a full and transparent investigation into the recent activities in the Manhattan SEZ and hold those responsible for injuring workers accountable."
The coalition says it will continue to stand by Cambodia "through this period and support constructive dialogue between all parties.
In 2011, Cambodia supplied nearly $2.6bn worth of apparel to the US, making it the sixth largest supplier.