Labor violations in factory manufacturing disks and electronics; low wages 750 (RMB); overtime is necessary to make ends meet; ten hours daily shifts for college interns; 11-12 hour shifts for regular workers; regular workers have one rest day every two weeks; when in need, production allows only one day off/month.
Incident Tag: Excessive Work Hours
Work hours exceeding the limit of 48 hours/week.
The ILO Hours of Work (Industry) Convention (No. 1) of 1919 introduced a maximum standard working time of 48 hours per week and eight hours per day as an international norm. In several exceptional cases, working time is allowed to exceed these limits, as long
as daily working time remains not higher than ten hours, and weekly working time not higher than 56 hours.
“The ILO conventions that address working hours have established a maximum of 48 hours per week plus 12 hours of overtime and this can only be applied on a sometime basis.”
Hours of Work (Industry) Convention, 1919 (No. 1)
Hours of Work (Commerce and Offices) Convention, 1930 (No. 30)
These two Conventions set the general standard at 48 regular hours of
work per week, with a maximum of 8 hours per day.
Weekly Rest (Industry) Convention, 1921 (No. 14)
Weekly Rest (Commerce and Offices) Convention, 1957 (No. 106)
Set the general standard that workers shall enjoy a rest period of at least
24 consecutive hours every 7 days.
Holidays with Pay Convention (Revised), 1970 (No. 132)
Every person to whom the Convention applies shall enjoy at least three
working weeks of annual paid holiday for one year of service.
Part-Time Work Convention, 1994 (No. 175)
Requires ratifying states to ensure that part-time workers receive the same
protection, basic wage and social security, as well as employment conditions
equivalent to those accorded to comparable full-time workers.
Adidas, Real Winner of the 2008 Olympics (3)
Terrible working conditions in factory (~3,000 workers) producing balls and sportswear; during peak season (October to February) workers don’t even have one day off a month; very low wages; factory withholds a month’s wage; workers experience ‘unimaginable pain’ on their hands from chemicals used; gloves provided only when factory is audited; factory trains workers to deceive clients.
Adidas, Real Winner of the 2008 Olympics (2)
Poor conditions in factory (~3,500 workers) producing sport accessories: low wages (local minimum wage 770 RMB/Month); frequently occurring accidents; 11 hours/day shifts (13,5 hours in factory), 6 days/week; compulsory overtime; hat production workers may stay at factory 16 hours.
Adidas, Real Winner of the 2008 Olympics (1)
Low wages, 10-12 hour shifts, 6 days/week for workers manufacturing sport shoes.
Domination of World’s Leading Retailer: Wal-Mart
Long hours, verbal and physical abuse at shoe factory; 8 hour shifts plus 4,5 hours forced overtime; overall stay (work & breaks) for workers at factory 15,5 hours.
Academic Research Report on Lever Style Inc.
Investigation reports low wages and 10 hour shifts/day at factory producing clothes.
Puma’s Failure in CSR: Supplier’s Critical Conditions
Wages as low as 64 cents an hour, forced overtime, 12-hour shifts, 6 days/week, some times even overnight on Saturdays for factory workers making sports shoes.
Apple admits excessive iPod hours
Apple says report of labour conditions at unnamed iPod plant found workers did more than 60 hours a week a third of the time and worked more than six consecutive days 25% of the time. [Report criticised by a leading international trade union organisation for not being independently verified.]
Foxconn Admits Breaking Labor Laws In China
Foxconn admits that their employees work about 80 extra hours each month, which is against the law in China.
Hyperbolic Apple iPod Factory Woes
Newspaper reports that workers producing iPods receive as little as £27 a month, doing 15-hour shifts.