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Hundreds of employees in China expressed their anger on Wednesday at their living and working conditions at the world’s largest iPhone factory – owned by Taiwanese subcontractor Foxconn – which is under strong anti-Covid restrictions.
“Let’s defend our rights!” : Employee protests erupted in China on Wednesday Nov. 23 at the world’s largest iPhone factory, owned by Taiwanese subcontractor Foxconn, according to images posted on social media Twitter and Weibo.
The factory is located in Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan province. It’s a huge industrial site, dubbed “iPhone City,” typically employing around 200,000 people, most of whom reside on-site in dormitories.
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China tirelessly pursues a “zero Covid” health policy, which includes strict confinements, quarantines for those who test positive and almost daily PCR tests, sparking growing discontent among the population.
Videos circulating on social media show riots and unrest at Zhengzhou Foxconn, where workers are fed up with working during a mismanaged Covid outbreak and feel cheated on by the company. Since the topic is limited on Weibo, some wonder if they were filming a movie there.. pic.twitter.com/CCPI3y2ICR
— Manya Koetse (@manyapan) November 23, 2022
Some categories of people, especially students and workers, are sometimes confined to campuses or production sites for many weeks at a time, without the possibility of moving freely.
Footage of the protests, verified by AFP, shows a crowd of workers marching down a street. Some face people in white overalls and riot police.
In a video shot at night, a man with a bloody face appears. Off camera, another is heard saying, “They’re hitting people, they’re hitting people. Do they have a conscience?”
Test booths destroyed
AFP was able to verify this video, in particular thanks to geolocation, which made it possible to recognize one of the buildings and barriers near the employee accommodation on the factory site. Another video shows destroyed Covid-19 test booths and an overturned vehicle.
In other footage, hundreds of people in white overalls can be seen standing on a street near the factory dormitories. The person filming from an adjacent building says, “It’s starting over. It’s from last night until this morning.”
Another video clip apparently shows security guards kicking a person who appears to be a worker lying on a road.
And in a video broadcast live at night, dozens of workers shout “Let’s stand up for our rights!” in front of lines of policemen and a police vehicle with flashing lights. Then the author of the video yells “They’re loading!” and “Tear gas!”
A video clip of the same night demonstration, taken from another angle, shows workers setting off fire extinguishers in the direction of the police located out of view of the camera. In a photo taken during the day, we see the charred remains of a gate, which apparently burned during the night.
A video also shot during the day shows several fire engines and policemen in white overalls, while a voice in a loudspeaker sings: “All workers, please return to your accommodation, do not associate with illegal minority elements”.
“Violence” confirmed by Foxconn
The hashtag #Foxconnriots appears to have been censored Wednesday afternoon on Chinese social media, including Weibo. Some posts referring to the protests, however, remained online.
Foxconn on Wednesday confirmed “violence” at its iPhone factory. The Taiwanese company, which assembles electronic products for many international brands and is Apple’s main subcontractor, has faced a surge in Covid-19 cases at its huge Zhengzhou site in recent months.
Foxconn had decided to cordon off the area, with workers inside. But hundreds of panicked workers then fled on foot, some complaining of the chaos and disorganization that reigned there. To keep the factory afloat, the company offered large bonuses to its remaining employees and sought to recruit new workers.
In its statement, the group stressed that workers had complained about wages and working conditions at the factory, but denied welcoming the new hires with coronavirus-positive staff.
US giant Apple, whose flagship is the iPhone, admitted in early November that the shutdown at its Zhengzhou site had “temporarily affected” production at the factory, a major blow ahead of the holiday season. of the year.
Foxconn is the largest private sector employer in China, with more than one million employees across the country in about 30 factories and research institutes.
With the AFP
