Apple has been trying to diversify the manufacturing process of its devices by having some of these also roll off production lines located in the United States, India and Vietnam. However, the iPhone, the flagship product of the Cupertino company, still relies heavily on Foxconn’s Chinese factories.
The panorama in the Asian country is quite particular. While in much of the world the pandemic restrictions have been lifted, in China a “zero covid” policy is being promoted which, in addition to put the Xi Jinping government under pressure with citizen protestsis affecting the production of companies like Apple.
The world’s largest iPhone factory is in trouble
According to the South China Morning Postthe world’s largest iPhone factory operated by Foxconn, need 100,000 workers to bring production back to normal levels. The Apple supplier, whose formal name is Hon Hai Precision Industry, reportedly managed to hire a few qualified people in recent days.
The epicenter of the labor shortage is in Henan, China’s third most populous province. Despite their enormous number of inhabitants, the factories face two major problems. On the one handmany people fled of industrial complexes in recent weeks after the government lockdowns due to COVID-19.
On the other hand, the strict controls are affecting the recruitment tasks. According to the aforementioned outlet, new employees must spend four days in quarantine in a designated “observation” zone before starting work, often in a “closed circuit.” Namely, live and work on the “campus” where the factories are.
Foxconn has tried to attract some of the workers who left their jobs with a bonus of 500 yuan (about 68 euros to change) and with an attendance incentive of 400 yuan (about 54 euros to change). However, many would have rejected the call, even having persuaded their friends not to accept these job offers.
As the company’s effort seems to have been insufficient, some municipalities in Henan province have reportedly taken action on the matter. According to Reuters, retirees, retired soldiers and state workers are being summoned to work at the Foxconn facilities in Zhengzhou, which is in charge of manufacturing the iPhone.
In early November Apple said that, due to the Chinese government’s COVID-19 restrictions, its main iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max factory was operating at “significantly reduced” capacity. Consequently, the company warned, the delivery times of the aforementioned devices would be delayed.
“We are working closely with our supplier to return to normal production levels while ensuring the health and safety of each worker,” Apple said. As we can see, the situation in the Foxconn factories in China is still not returning to normal levels.
Images: Manzana
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