' PRISON-LIKE ' CONDITIONS FOR HP WORKERS IN CHINA ?

[Anonymous]

http://www.computerweekly.com/Articles/2009/02/17/234866/prison-like-conditions-for-workers-making-ibm-dell-hp-microsoft-and-lenovo.htm
‘Prison-like’ conditions for workers making IBM, Dell, HP, Microsoft and Lenovo products
Chinese
factory workers are working in prison-like conditions for 41 cents an
hour to make computer parts for IBM, Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo
and Dell, a report claims.US organisation the National Labour Committee
(NLC) found 2,000 workers at the Meitai factory work an average of 74
hours a week, for a base wage of 64 cents an hour. This drops to 41
cents an hour after room and board is removed.The workers, mostly young
women aged from 18 to their mid-20s, are not allowed to talk, listen to
music, look around them, put their hands in their pockets, or go to the
toilet unless it is an official break.Workers are encouraged to monitor
each other and are fined if they break rules. These include being one
minute late for a shift or putting personal items on a work desk.On the
assembly line, a keyboard passes each worker every 7.2 seconds. The
worker has to snap six or seven keys into place in that time.

Prison sentence
The
NLC visited the factory between June and September 2009 and in January
this year. One worker said, “I feel like I am serving a prison
sentence. We are really livestock and should not be called workers.”The
Meitai Plastics and Electronics factory in Dongguan City, Guangdong
Province, China, makes keyboards and other equipment for Dell, HP, IBM,
Microsoft, and Lenovo.The companies said they would investigate
conditions at the factory but none said they would cancel contracts
linked to the factory.Microsoft said the factory supplies one of its
contracted manufacturers. A spokesperson said, “We are working closely
with our industry partners and contracted supplier to conduct an
investigation and make any necessary improvements to comply with all
guidelines and regulations.”

Actively investigating
Lenovo
also said it does not deal directly with the factory, which has links
with one of its suppliers. The company said the factory will be audited
by the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition. It also said its
supplier would be investigating the factory.A spokesperson for
HP said, “The factory named in the report is not one of HP’s direct
suppliers, but is a supplier to two of our suppliers. HP will audit
this facility through a validated industry audit. This will be
conducted promptly by a third-party audit firm on behalf of the
Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition. Based on the results of the
audit, we will work together with our supplier to develop corrective
actions where appropriate.”Dell said it was “actively investigating”
the issues in the report. A spokesperson said, “I can tell you that any
reports of poor working conditions in Dell’s supply chain are
investigated and appropriate action is taken.”Charles
Kernaghan, report author and director at the NLC, said, “The $200
personal computer and the $22.99 keyboard may be seen as a great
bargain, but in the long run they come at a terrible cost.””Through the
(Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC), of which IBM is a
founding member, a joint-audit is being conducted to assemble the facts
and address this issue with the supplier/or suppliers involved.

[Author]

February 17, 2009 at 11:42 AM