Foxconn chief dodges accusation of discrimination in India hiring practices

Foxconn chair Young Liu, visiting a Foxconn factory in Chennai, emphasized that "Foxconn hires regardless of gender, but women make up a big part of our workforce here." The remark did not specifically address the alleged discrimination against married women.

The accusation came after a report from Reuters on the makeup of the worker population at the Chennai plant accused Foxconn of discrimination. Reuters said that it found that married women were systematically excluded from jobs due to having family responsibilities.

The Chennai plant employs some 41,281 workers, of whom 33,360 were women. However, the number of married women working there numbered just 2,750, or 8.2 percent.

Liu commented on the charge during his appearance at the facility to celebrate the opening of a hostel complex for the workers there. The hostel is exclusively for female workers at the plant.

"I emphasise married women greatly contribute to the efforts of what we're doing here," Liu said in rebutting the Reuters investigation. The Modi government in India has ordered labor officials in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu to investigate the charges made by the Reuters report.

Foxconn has acknowledged some past discrimination in hiring practices back in 2022, but said it has worked since then to address the issues. Responding to the current allegations, the company says it "vigorously denies" the new report.

Apple has yet to comment on the matter. India has become an increasingly important country for manufacturing iPhones and other devices for Apple.