Foxconn Technology Group on Monday announced a slew of new perks and bonuses for employees at its massive iPhone component factory in Zhengzhou, China.
The factory was quarantined during one of China’s destructive coronavirus lockdowns in November, leading to such wild spectacles as workers climbing the fences to escape and replacements rioting because they were not paid their promised signing bonuses.
Foxconn announced on Monday that new employees will receive bonuses of up to $424 if they work at least 90 days at the Zhengzhou factory, plus an hourly wage of about $2.97, which is high for the area. Existing employees have been offered a $70 bonus for referring other workers to the plant.
The South China Morning Post (SCMP) noted Foxconn has already increased worker benefits twice during the past month, including the bonus for new recruits who stay with the plant for 90 days. This would imply the gigantic factory remains understaffed despite months of aggressive recruiting efforts and that Foxconn needs to ramp up production as the planned September launch of the iPhone 15 approaches.
The SCMP also suggested Foxconn management is eager to signal to the Chinese government that it does not plan to abandon Zhengzhou.
In the wake of the November lockdown disaster, Apple and Foxconn both announced initiatives to diversify their supply chains into alternative nations like India and Vietnam. Apple CEO Tim Cook said in February that the disruptions in Zhengzhou contributed to the first quarterly decline in revenue for Apple since 2019.
“Earlier this month, Foxconn chairman and chief executive Liu Young-way visited Chengdu, capital of southwestern Sichuan province, where he told workers that the company has no plans to leave the city and its ‘important’ production base there,” the SCMP noted.
Apple stated after the riots in late November that it would send a team to Zhengzhou to “review the situation” and ensure “employees’ concerns are addressed.” Market analysts predicted, at the time, that iPhone production could slump by up to 30 percent if the Foxconn plant in Zhengzhou did not return to optimum capacity.
The Chinese government announced the end of lockdown policies in December, following weeks of nationwide unrest. The regime has been working throughout 2023 to convince foreign companies to keep manufacturing in China, with promises that citywide lockdowns will not be imposed again.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.