Samsung factory hires children; beats employees; forces 11 hour days, 6 days/week

[FanIn80]

(New York) Today, China Labor Watch released an investigative report on Samsung’s supplier HEG Electronics (Huizhou) Co., Ltd. HEG is an important partner of South Korea’s Samsung, processing such products as mobile phones, DVDs, stereo equipment and MP3s for Samsung. China Labor Watch carried out three investigations during the months of June and July 2012, uncovering issues of child labor and student labor exploitation as well as several other problems. A serious light needs to be shined on these issues.

Our research indicates that student workers amount to 80% of the factory workforce. Based on follow-up investigations, our investigators suspected that there were a large number of child workers in other departments of the factory, estimating that there may have been 50 to 100 children working in the factory. (In our interviews, the youngest worker was 14 years old.) These children were working under same harsh conditions as adult workers, but were paid only 70% of the wages when compared with the formal employees. Moreover, these child workers were often required to carry-out dangerous tasks that resulted in injury.

The following are the violations we discovered in this investigation:

• The factory hires a large number of student and child workers. These children were working under same harsh conditions as adult workers, but were paid only 70% of the wages when compared with the formal employees. The rights of these children and students are not properly protected.
• There is discrimination based on sex, age, and individuality during the hiring process.
• Excessive working time. The workers toil 11 hours per day (including 3-5 hours of forced overtime), 6 days per week, 26-28 days per month. Their attendance system is also defective and unfair, negatively influencing the physical and mental health of the student and child workers.
• Legal problems exist in issues regarding the labor contract, remuneration system, and reward and punishment system of the company. There are extremely strict punishments, and the workers are frequently fined.
• Night shift workers are only given time to eat one meal during the 11-hour work shift. The normal meal break is 30-40 minutes long.
• The workers always work under dangerous conditions, and work injuries are common.

http://chinalaborwatch.wordpress.com...sung-supplier/

The management are abusive during work, sometimes hitting workers on the factory floor. Any carelessness, such as slow movements, misoperation, or late completion of team leaders’ orders could provoke the shouting of team leaders at any time. Every day, employees in the workshops were punished by standing (be made to stand) all day long, writing self-criticism, or getting fined. However, based on interviews with the management, their attitude towards the above issues was that they had gone through the same process before they reached their current position, and when mistakes are made, one naturally must accept punishment.

On the morning of June 29th, 2012, a worker in Line 8 of Production Three Packing, accidentally drew a line on a box, failing to pass the quality test in the OQC spot check. This worker was punished by standing for an entire day and was fired and fined 300 RMB ($47.6) in the afternoon.

http://chinalaborwatch.files.wordpre...msung8-271.pdf

[nik-]

Apple is probably gonna sue them for stealing this too.

[GGG]

I will have to try forced standing and writing self critcism to get more out of the people who work for me.

[bomber317]

Not sure how many followed the Mr Daisey Apple story. Interesting listen.

http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radi...460/retraction

http://www.thisamericanlife.org/blog...apple-factory/

[MrMastodonFarm]

From Chicago, WBEV, This American Life, I'm Ira Glass. Each episode we have a theme, todays theme, fanaticism.

In the first act we travel to Calgary where an Apple fan loves them so much, he picks and chooses which acts of cruelty to focus on.... And despite the blow back from his fellow forum posters refuses to accept that Apple isn't God.

This American Life, brought to you by Zion. Zion, what moves you. Back after the break.

[Teh_Bandwagoner]

Originally Posted by nik-

Apple is probably gonna sue them for stealing this too.

http://teamcoco.com/video/samsung-de...harges-copying

[FanIn80]

As well as child labour, it is claimed HEG Electronics enforces compulsory overtime of three to five hours per day beyond the normal eight-hour production line shift. Workers on HEG’s 11-hour night shift are given only a 40-minute break for meals, China Labor Watch said, alleging that the firm had "slack internal supervision mechanisms".

Samsung said its own inspections at the factory this year revealed nothing untoward, but said it would immediately examine China Labor Watch's claims.

"Samsung Electronics has conducted two separate on-site inspections on HEG's working conditions this year but found no irregularities on those occasions," a spokesman said.
"A team of inspectors consisting of Samsung personnel from Korea headquarters will be dispatched to Huizhou, China on 9 August, and it will immediately launch an investigation and take appropriate measures to correct any problems that may surface."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technolog...e-factory.html

[RyZ]

Facepalm.jpeg

[MrMastodonFarm]

Fanin80 is becoming a parody of himself.

[saskflames69]

At least those kids found jobs.. heck even McDonalds wouldn't hire me. Not enough entry level jobs here.

[Old Yeller]

Their tiny little hands make really great phones.

[Canada 02]

about time, smartphones are way to expensive

[J pold]

Originally Posted by MrMastodonFarm

From Chicago, WBEV, This American Life, I'm Ira Glass. Each episode we have a theme, todays theme, fanaticism.

In the first act we travel to Calgary where an Apple fan loves them so much, he picks and chooses which acts of cruelty to focus on.... And despite the blow back from his fellow forum posters refuses to accept that Apple isn't God.

This American Life, brought to you by Zion. Zion, what moves you. Back after the break.

I love this American Life, making this post golden.

[Devils'Advocate]

I don't get this thread.

When Apple was charged with poor treatment of their workers, everyone piled on, including myself. Apple was rightfully condemned for not caring about the conditions in the Foxconn factory.

However, when Samsung is charged with WORSE conditions (nobody found children working in the factory producing Apple products), it's all one great big funny joke?

[nik-]

Probably because Samsung is just some faceless company. When your figurehead presents himself as some uber-buddhist genius demi-god ... you make yourself a target when you screw up.

[Devils'Advocate]

So when your CEO is a public figure, then child labour is a no-no.

But when your CEO is unknown, then go right ahead.... that's super fine.

Oy-vey.

[nik-]

That's not even sort of what I said. When you come across like Jobs did, more people are going to want to take a shot. I'm not defending Samsung, I'm just answering your question.

[REDVAN]

the youngest worker was 14 years old the youngest worker was 14 years old

What is the problem?

[MrMastodonFarm]

Originally Posted by Devils'Advocate

I don't get this thread.

Really, you don't get this thread?

It's because of who started the thread and who tried to keep it going that people aren't taking the topic seriously.

[GreenLantern2814]

This feels like less of a Samsung issue and more of a china issue. If this had been attempted in England or America or here, workers would hve just quit. But you can't do that in china.

If this turns out to be another lie like the whole Foxconn thing, I wouldn't be surprised. But don't blame a company for taking advantage of a situation, blame the country that allows this sort of thing to be widespread and acceptable behavior as it attempts to become the most powerful country on earth.