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Article

15 Feb 2012

Author:
Richard Waters, Financial Times

Apple has incentive to worry about workers’ rights

Apple’s handling of…supply chain labour issues…[is] a central concern not just for its own future but for the industry at large…One implication is that costs will rise…All of this presumes, of course, that Apple actually has the power to influence how its suppliers treat their own workers. Transparency appears to be one problem. Apple executives argue strenuously that they audit suppliers thoroughly and have identified any problems…Yet independent investigations…continue to point to significant shortcomings. Apple’s leaders certainly have plenty of incentive to get to the root of this problem. The consequences of failing to deal with it would be significant…As Nike and Reebok found a decade ago, customers can rebel against brands associated with sweatshop practices…for Apple’s brand to thrive as it moves into its new phase of global manufacturing superpower…[it] will have to show that…[it] is dedicated to the betterment of a large slice of the world’s working population. [also refers to Foxconn (part of Hon Hai)]