Critical.
Authoritative.
Strategic.
Subscribe to CIO Magazine »

162,000 sign petition targeting Apple's Chinese factory conditions

The petition asks Apple to take steps to protect workers at factories that make iPhones and iPads

An online petition asking Apple to protect the Chinese workers who make its more popular products has gathered more than 162,000 signatures in just over a week.

The petition, at Change.org, is a response to recent media reports alleging poor working conditions at factories operated by Chinese companies that have contracts to build iPhones, iPads and other popular Apple products.

Mark Shields, a Washington, D.C., communications consultant, started the petition after hearing about working conditions in the Chinese factories on "This American Life," a radio show.

The same week as Shields started the petition, the New York Times published a lengthy story alleging long work hours and unsafe conditions at factories operated by Apple partner Foxconn Technology.

The radio report talked about repetitive motion injuries and other problems at Apple partner factories, Shields wrote in his petition. "We ask that Apple release a worker protection strategy for new product releases, which are the instances when injuries and suicides typically spike because of the incredible pressure to meet quotas timed to releases," he wrote.

Shields described himself as an Apple "super-user," but said the report upset him.

"Here's the thing: you're Apple," he wrote in the petition. "You're supposed to think different. I want to continue to use and love the products you make, because they're changing the world, and have already changed my life. But I also want to know that when I buy products from you, it's not at the cost of horrible human suffering."

Apple didn't respond to a request for comments on the petition. Apple CEO Tim Cook was reportedly "outraged" by the New York Times report. Cook promised in a letter to Apple employees to "dig deeper" into allegations of poor working conditions at the Chinese factories.

Shields' campaign has been "remarkable," said Amanda Kloer, director of organizing for Change.org, a site that allows users to start petitions. "He learned about an injustice associated with his favorite products, and instead of just feeling angry or sad, he decided to fight that injustice using his power as a consumer," she said. "It has been incredible to watch his campaign take off."

Grant Gross covers technology and telecom policy in the U.S. government for The IDG News Service. Follow Grant on Twitter at GrantGross. Grant's e-mail address is grant_gross@idg.com.

Join the CIO Australia group on LinkedIn. The group is open to CIOs, IT Directors, COOs, CTOs and senior IT managers.

More about: Apple, Foxconn, IDG, Technology
References show all

Comments

Post new comment

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.
Users posting comments agree to the CIO comments policy.
Login or register to link comments to your user profile, or you may also post a comment without being logged in.
Related Coverage
Related Whitepapers
Latest Stories
Community Comments
Tags: Amanda Kloer, Apple, business issues, consumer electronics, Foxconn Technology, Mark Shields, Media players / recorders, smartphones, tim cook
Latest Blog Posts
Whitepapers
  • 2-Layer BPM: Oracle's Unique Strategy Towards Exceptional Agility and Business Process Efficiencies
    Today, a new approach to BPM — the use of BPM and SOA together in a layering strategy — offers built-in smartness and high configurability. This dynamic approach to business process management is based on context and content. It offers agility throughout an organization, and it can dramatically increase productivity and time-to-market.
    Learn more »
  • CSO Security Buyers Guide 2011
    Welcome to the 2011 /2012 CSO Security Buyers Guide CSO is keeping security professionals ahead of the evolving threats and challenges to their businesses. This resource for security professionals assists you in finding leading IT security vendors by their products and solutions. Happy Browsing! The 2011 CSO Buyers Guide team
    Learn more »
  • HP Imaging and Printing Services
    According to Gartner, a major focus for organisations today and in the foreseeable future is shifting from cost reduction to growth, expansion, innovation, and operational excellence. If your organization is serious about driving growth and innovation and improving customer experiences, you’ll find that a well-managed imaging and printing environment is key to these goals. A growing number of organizations are turning to services as a means of integrating imaging and printing into their overall IT infrastructure strategies. It may be one of the fastest ways to continue to drive down costs, fund innovation, and prepare your organisation to capitalise on future opportunities. Read more.
    Learn more »
All whitepapers
rhs_login_lockGet exclusive access to Invitation only events CIO, reports & analysis.
Recent comments