Apple supplier Foxconn Technology Group said on Wednesday it was restructuring its local management at its Sriperumbudur facility in southern India after protests erupted over living conditions at its dormitory facilities.
The factory in Tamil Nadu has been at the centre of a mass food-poisoning incident which sparked employee protests and threw light on the living conditions of the workers in hostels near the factory.
Separately, an Apple spokesperson said Foxconn’s Sriperumbudur facility had been placed on probation.
Last week, more than 250 women who work at the plant and live in one of the hostels had to be treated for food poisoning, sparking protests. Some of the protesters were rounded up by police but later released.
The incident has thrown a spotlight on living conditions for the workers – most of them women – who reside in hostels near the factory in the southern city of Chennai.
The Taiwanese contract manufacturer for Apple and other big tech names, as well as 11 of its contractors including those who provide food and living facilities were summoned for a meeting, the official said. The official was not authorised to speak on the matter and declined to be identified.
The state government asked Foxconn to review services provided to the workers including power backup at the hostels, food and water, and the Tamil Nadu state Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health also recommended providing recreational facilities such as a TV, a library and indoor games, the official added.
According to a separate government source, Foxconn has told state bureaucrats it had “ramped up production too quickly” and would gradually ensure that workers’ facilities were upgraded before they go back to full capacity.
- Reuters with additional editing by Jim Pollard
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