I hope those allegations aren't for real... I mean, this is China after all, but still. Makes you wonder how cushy we really have it here in the West.

Now we see that the Nike collaboration would work fine at the Asia end. Many companies work in this way, only a few are exposed with no legal 'blame' because construction is contracted out.

It's a good first step for Apple to provide the media with its worker code:

This is the Apple Supplier Code of Conduct.

I was impressed by a number of things, the first of which was Apple's obvious awareness of the cultural/societal differences between factories in the U.S. and those in China and elsewhere. There is a clear undertstanding of the many human rights/fairness issues that we've been discussing on these boards.

I was uneasy with the clause that said that a work week should be no more than 60 hours "except in emergency or unusual situations." Does a product shortage count as an unusual situation? How about a shortage of workers? The term "reasonable living space" (referring to worker dormitories) similarly got my attention.

I hope that Apple doesn't leave these terms up to the interpretation of factory managers who may want to bend them to mean otherwise. This .PDF does not reflect an operationalization or proceduralization of most of this code - whether there is a more detailed document elsewhere, I don't know.

Good for Apple.

But let's face it - how (or why) can any of these companies in China respect the human rights of their workers when their own government does not?

It's the dirty laundry we all know about, but don't want to see.

I am so sick of the two faced hypocritical statements and demands we put on as a facade to make us all feel better. That we are at LEAST complaining. On one side of the fence, we complain about corporations, monopolies, and dominating market, and "Squeezing out the little guy". This in a sense is related to self serving greed. We are all really concerned about popping the bubble of our personal "American Dream" of starting a company and getting filthy rich. We all don't want anything to come in the way of that. BUT, when we choose to buy from Wal-Mart, one who is notorious for overtaking small communities with a super store that puts all small business owners out of work, but even knowing this, the bottom line is that it is cheaper for us. I know of no competing computers that do not make and assemble most, if not all of their products somewhere other than America or Europe, due to the regulations, costs, permits, wages, etc., that would make that product no longer a competitive product due to price. Apple is under direct fire over their ipod "Dominance". Sony, Creative, Micro$oft, Toshiba, etc.. Would all like to do ANYTHING to reduce Apple's share of the pie, so that they can have a chance to gain it all for themselves. On a previous thread on this same topic, I wrote how the average Family income per household in China ranges from $890 (US) to $1,100 (US) per YEAR. It does suck, as to our standards, but at least with the business from ipods and computers, that wage became 2.2 x the average wage PLUS room and board, and only for ONE member of the household. It still sucks, but is is a giant step forward in progression of that economy. This is an upward trend that must continue for the people of China and many other countries. So next time you find yourself complaining about the fact that Apple does not make $200 desktops, or $300 laptops, or when you go to your local store, shop for what you want, ask questions, etc., then go home and buy from whoever because it was cheaper, remember that for companies to give that to you, it comes at a "Cost".

Having lived for awhile in a third world country, "having a bucket to wash their clothes" is actually fairly standard practice, from my experience. I fact, it's a step up from those that have to go down to the river to wash them because they don't have a bucket.

This story is no different than more than a dozen or so that you can google up. What is different is the Apple and iPod brand names are attached to this one. This is just like that organization that tried to rake Apple over the coals for not recycling old computers last year. They used Apple because of Apples high visibility, to promote their cause. Not because Apple was worse than any other electronics manufacturer.

It comes down to this. The values in China are different than they are here. The workers in China are willing to put up with far more for far less than we westerners are. I don't see much difference in China's current working situations and the conditions that were present here in the US at the turn of the 20 century. Like us. The changes (we'd like to see occur) in their workman's ethics have to come from within China. However, their current ethos gives China an advantage in the world market. China has yet to see a true Industrial revolution like Europe and America saw in the two previous centuries. When they do. The market they create will make the current market we enjoy dominance over, look pathetic. Their population is currently 11X ours. Imagine a Quadrillion Dollar market cap.

The people working in the factories are happy to have the work. They're making a pittance by our standards. But it's a multiplier more than they'd make in the rural farms where most of them come from. Perception of personal freedoms are also different in China. Until about 10 years ago most adults in China had no concept of Intellectual Property. The Chinese government has been trying to teach this concept to it's populace through a soap opera where an author writes a book and it gets stolen and published before the original.

Definitely not trying to freak anyone out, but it surely makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside to hear people actually defending the free market for a change. makes me feel other things too....