Apple contractor repair depot described as a 'sweatshop' by workers

CSAT Solutions employees complain about poor work conditions

The repair depot in question is the CSAT Solutions Houston facility, one of many companies that Apple uses for repairs. According to complaints, contractors hired by CSAT work on incoming repairs from Apple, Lenovo, and others with poor pay, long hours, and disgusting work environments.

Multiple current and former employees spoke to Business Insider about the working conditions. Several problems were described from broken air conditioning units to feces-covered toilets.

"'Sweatshop' would be the number one way I would describe CSAT," a manager who worked there for four years told Business Insider. "People are running everywhere. People are being yelled at. It's a lot of chaos when you walk in."

Apple provided a statement about the issues reported, saying that facilities are inspected regularly and Apple's partners are held to the "highest standards in the industry."

"We uphold the highest standards in the industry and regularly assess our suppliers to ensure they comply," an Apple spokesperson said. "We have undertaken three assessments at CSAT in Houston in recent years, and Apple members regularly visit the site. We take all allegations seriously and will investigate. As always, our focus is on making sure that everyone in our supply chain is protected and treated with dignity and respect."

Employees interviewed about the conditions say that Apple knew about the poor working conditions. They cite multiple Apple visits over the years with no changes to the environment.

This isn't the first time there have been reports of poor working conditions at CSAT Houston. An avid Apple leaker named @choco_bit, or "Fudge," on Twitter shared details about this repair center before.

Fudge described the CSAT management as "slow and incompetent." The leaker also said that "their workers are paid little while being expected to meet insane repair quotas with garbage work conditions."

These comments were made after a ransomware attack affected the Houston facility. Apple uses a variety of repair depots, though it appears that this CSAT facility is prone to issues.