One of Apple’s iPhone supplier, Pegatron Corp. in China was discovered to be in violation of Apple’s Supplier Code of Conduct and hence, Apple has halted their contracts with the supplier until corrective measures were taken. Pegatron Corp. was revealed to be falsifying paperwork to hide violations in a student worker program.
Apple maintains a strict code for its suppliers which are part of their massive global supply chain, a move which came about after they faced lots of pressure for contracting companies known for abusing labour laws. Apple has since tightened their standards and also audits the working conditions at many of its manufacturing sites. However, since the supply chain is so large, it is difficult to keep track of everyone.
Pegatron Corp, a Taiwanese company that has its manufacturing plant in China, has been producing iPhones, iPads, Macs and other components for Apple for many years. The company already has allegations for violating labour laws in the past and this is only the latest. Apple discovered that management at the company went to extreme lengths to hide these violations, which included allowing students to work nights and/or overtime.
In a statement, Apple said:
Pegatron misclassified the student workers in their program and falsified paperwork to disguise violations of our Code, including allowing students to work nights and/or overtime and in some cases to perform work unrelated to their major. The individuals at Pegatron responsible for the violations went to extraordinary lengths to evade our oversight mechanisms.
While current production and contracts will not be affected between the two companies, Apple has halted any future contracts with Pegatron until it takes corrective measures. Pegatron quickly replied, saying that it is looking into the matter and will take action to adhere to the code of conduct and regain Apple’s trust.