Catherwood LibraryILR School

Although Apple had promised to improve working conditions in China by monitoring their chain suppliers, a recent report found that in at least one of its major suppliers, employees are working in excess of the company’s stated 60-hour limit. A review of over 1200 paystubs found that 71% of those employees had worked over 60 hours at Pegatron, an assembly plant in Shanghai. Local overtime regulations were also violated; Chinese law allows for a maximum number of 36 overtime hours per month, and only 1 percent of Pegatron’s workers fell below that number. Average wages at Pegatron are approximately $1.82 per hour. Apple had said last year that 92 percent of its suppliers complied with its 60-hour limit; Pegatron is a major supplier, producing one quarter of all iPhones worldwide.