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Another Foxconn factory worker in China nearly committed suicide before being talked out of lunging himself off a building rooftop to almost certain death. He is one of about 300 Foxconn workers who reportedly organized a mass suicide as part of a pay raise protest at a factory that makes Xbox parts for Microsoft.
The Register out of the U.K. pieced together the story after wrangling reports from various sources, including Chinese newspaper Want China Times where it was reported hundreds of employees asked their boss for a raise. The paper said they were given two options: quit with compensation or keep their jobs with no raise (polite way of saying "shut up"). The compensation, for those who opted to go that route, was promised at a month's worth of salary, but Foxconn allegedly reneged on the deal.
Had it not been for the Mayor of Wuhan, who talked angry workers out of their suicide threat and at least one employee off of a rooftop, this could have turned out much worse. Still, it's yet another black eye for Foxconn and its partners who outsource production to the company, including Microsoft.
"Microsoft takes working conditions in the factories that manufacture its products very seriously, and we are currently investigating this issue," Microsoft told The Register in a statement. "We have a stringent Vendor Code of Conduct that spells out our expectations, and we monitor working conditions closely on an ongoing basis and address issues as they emerge. Microsoft is committed to the fair treatment and safety of workers employed by our vendors, and to ensuring conformance with Microsoft policy."
Foxconn issued a statement of its own saying approximately 150 employees at its Wuhan campus organized a "workplace incident" after the company announced its decision to transfer all employees in its business unit to another location within that campus due to a shift in production lines.
" The incident was successfully and peacefully resolved later that morning after discussions between the workers, local Foxconn officials and representatives from the local government, including the labor department," Foxconn said. "As part of the agreement between Foxconn and the employees in question, 45 of those employees chose to resign from the company under the terms of a voluntary resignation agreement and the remaining employees chose to remain as Foxconn employees."
Image Credit: Weibo
Comments are closed on this article
M3g4d37h
January 21, 2012 at 4:31pm
blkpanthr is a model drone ..erm, sheep .. umm, i meant citizen.
all hail capitalism. america, fuck yeah.
it amazes me sometimes what a limited view some folks have of the world. as long as you have your toys, you clearly could give two shits about anything but yourself. if your opines represent the future, we're fucked as a duck.
newegg911
January 16, 2012 at 7:28pm
Yeah I know what capitalism is, and it's not you scum that treat people like sub-humans while you sit on your ass and talk shit about how awesome you are and that people are lazy while you sit all smug and bitch about the poor who actually do all the manual labor that makes you rich.
Capitalism is about the plumber the other day who came to my house and could have charged me almost anything because I wanted my toilet to NOT spew shit water and the fix (even though I tried my damnest) was beyond my ability,asked me what seemed reasonable to me for the fix. So instead of charging me my first born, he took some kindness and asked only for $120 because the fix was in his words "was not difficult at all with the tools I have". That is capitalism: getting rewarded with compensation so you can make a decent living and having pride in your work, not screwing people for your oversized ego and greed. (Since this other human being was so decent to me, when he has a problem that is difficult and beyond his area of expertise, I will gladly help him for a very reasonable rate in other areas like he has treated me.)
Supermonkey
January 11, 2012 at 8:05pm
This management doesn't know how to look after the emotional well being of it's workers. It's not about money. This company should go out of business.
kiaghi7
January 11, 2012 at 4:25pm
And what better way to demonstrate to your superiors within the company that you are a secure, stable, and reliable employee than to immediately resort to SUICIDAL TENDENCIES when you are denied a raise!
Granted, the situation should be looked at, and I hope they do get a raise... But if there are numbers to protest the working wage(s) being paid, then strike or other means of labor negotiation... Don't threaten suicide, because even if the person doesn't commit suicide, he's likely to be fired for the incident where he demonstrated that he is clearly not entirely stable.
Dark Blade
January 11, 2012 at 3:08pm
Am i the only one who fails to see the logic behind commiting suiside to get a raise
ocnier
January 11, 2012 at 12:18pm
This is more a symptom of the culture/govt than globalization. This is also the country with the little girl that was run over and no one did a damn thing on the street to help her. China is morally bankrupt... PERIOD.... Until the government changes from COMMUNISM/SOCIALISM and people are truly allowed to finally seek happiness not just survival this will continue. Oh wait we have a word for the desire to seek happiness and liberty in this country its called the CONSTITUTION and wait it gets better, its buoyed by somethng called CAPITALISM...... hmm...... maybe its not so bad after all. Chew on that twinkie, damn, oh wait unions and socialists probably just killed that yesterday, oh well. You can always get on your macs and go drink lattes with the rest of the apple cultists and talk about how capitalism is the root of all evil. Me i'm just gonna go back to work and worry about how the government wants to punish me for being successful......
RUSENSITIVESWEETNESS
January 11, 2012 at 2:18pm
Yeah, the rest of us should stand in line just to wipe your ass . . . .
ocnier
January 12, 2012 at 9:46pm
Right after you get me that twinkie, oh wait you can't because you just ran it out of business. Don't worry I bet there's some ding dongs left on the shelf you can shove in your mouth.
Bad Kharma
January 11, 2012 at 1:00pm
Nothing like the bonecrushing capitalism that allows capitalist companies to treat their employees like slave labour. Or like capitalist companies who are cheap enough that they transfer these jobs to third world countries so that they don't have to pay their domestic employees a decent living wage. Or capitalistic companies that will get rid of domestic jobs to the detriment of their own country and economy for their own sheer greed.
Wake up numbnuts. Stop with the party line and open your friggin eyes.
ocnier
January 12, 2012 at 9:45pm
Would you like a twinkie, i'm sure after you negotiate with 100 or so different labor contracts you can have one..... Sorry capatalism isn't the problem here. Sorry governments and sorry unions/labor are. Maybe you can move to Greece and retire at 45 on their pension system. Oh wait their bankrupt just like hostess.... Damn....... Hmmm is their a connection..... I bet the French will still take your ass. Oh wait their sucking German dong because they are up to asses in socialism as well (Merkel might as well have a strap on LOL) ..... hmmm is there a connection..... I wonder.....
LatiosXT
January 12, 2012 at 9:21am
Because
- Business taxes are terrible. The US continues have this wonderful idea of taxing the rich (i.e., those with money) more and more. Sooner or later they're going to pack up and leave.
- Did you enjoy picking up whatever electronics you used for that price? Well if they were made in the US, to cover at least minimum wage, they'd probably be quite a bit more.
- I've heard anecdotes of manual labor contractors preferring the "cheaper" labor from illegal aliens because they actually work. They don't twiddle their thumbs or complain all the time, at least on the job.
Biceps
January 11, 2012 at 11:29am
Yay, isn't globalization a wonderful thing? This episode is merely a symptom of the problem of constant cost cutting and profiteering by manufacturers who provide inhuman working conditions, corrupt managers, have no international oversight and few real labor protections. I would rather pay more for my shiny toys than know my money goes to companies like FoxConn. Even their statement sounds evil. When you can, buy American.
THE_REAL_MAVERICK
January 11, 2012 at 11:24am
China can mass produce stuff, but they need to work on their business skills, any decent manager should know when employees are unhappy. Suicide has a higher percentage in Asia also.
AntonioGarrison
January 11, 2012 at 10:23am
Is Foxconn the same company that had all those suicides with Apple a year ago as well? Also , going the suicide route for a raise is very, very extreme. This must have been an on going issue, rather than a one time question for a raise.
