US watchdog finds violations at Foxconn factory making Amazon devices
Foxconn is investigating a plant in China that makes Echo Dot smart speakers and Kindle e-readers for Amazon.com after an American watchdog group criticized the conditions at the factory, according to Reuters.
New York-based China Labor Watch conducted a nine-month investigation at the factory and found that long hours, low wages, poor training and an over-reliance on temporary works violated Chinese law at the Hengyang Foxconn plant.
This isn’t the first time that Foxconn has drawn scrutiny for its labor practices. The company came under fire in 2010 following numerous suicides at plants in China. The company promised that it would improve working conditions.
Amazon said it audited the factory in March and found overtime and the use of temporary workers as “issues of concern.”
“We immediately requested a corrective action plan from Foxconn,” adding, “We are committed to ensuring that these issues are resolved.”
Foxconn emailed a statement to Reuters, who first reported this story, saying, “We are carrying out a full investigation of the areas raised by that report, and if found to be true, immediate actions will be taken to bring the operations into compliance with our Code of Conduct,” Foxconn Technology Group said in a statement emailed to Reuters.
Taiwan-based Foxconn is the world’s largest contract electronics manufacturer and employs more than a million people.
