Wistron Violence: Taiwanese Supplier Accepts Mistake, Sacks India Boss; Apple Puts Firm On Probation

The iPhone maker said it would not award the Taiwanese contract manufacturer-new business until it addressed the way workers were treated at Wistron's Narasapura facility.

(File Photo/ Getty)

New Delhi: Apple Inc has placed its Taiwanese supplier Wistron Corp on probation after it found violations of its supplier code of conduct by failing to implement proper working hour management processes leading to payment delays for some workers in October and November. The iPhone maker said it would not award the Taiwanese contract manufacturer-new business until it addressed the way workers were treated at Wistron's Narasapura facility in Kolar, about 60 km from Bengaluru in Karnataka. "We have placed Wistron on probation and they will not receive any new business from Apple before they complete corrective actions. Apple employees, along with independent auditors, will monitor their progress. Our main objective is to make sure all the workers are treated with dignity and respect, and fully compensated promptly," said Apple in an email reply to a query by ABP Network. Last Saturday, the contract workers angry over unpaid wages destroyed property, gear, and iPhones, causing millions of dollars in losses to Wistron and forcing it to shut the plant. Wistron, on its part, has taken disciplinary action and fired Vincent Lee, the vice-president of its India operations. The contract-manufacturer for Apple iPhones with around 8,500 contract workers and 1,500 permanent employees is restructuring its recruitment and payroll teams in Narasapura. It has set up an employee assistance program and a 24-hour grievance hotline in Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, and English to ensure all workers at the facility can voice any concerns anonymously. Wistron, which plans to benefit from the government's production linked incentive (PLI) scheme, apologized to its workers for not paying their dues in time and aims to strengthen some of the processes to manage labour agencies and upgrade payment systems. "Apple employees and independent auditors hired by Apple have been working around the clock to investigate the issues which occurred at Wistron's Narasapura facility. As always, our focus is on making sure everyone in our supply chain is protected and treated with dignity and respect. We are very disappointed and taking immediate steps to address these issues," said the Cupertino, California-based tech giant, in a statement. In 2017, Wistron started the assembly of Apple's first iPhone model in India. But now, Apple has ramped up assembly operations, with Foxconn and another top supplier Pegatron is set to begin local operations. Also, India's Tata Group is said to be in talks with Apple to invest Rs 11,000 crore for setting up a mobile and components manufacturing unit in India.