Labour Dept Officials Visit Foxconn Plant In Tamil Nadu For Inquiry Into Hiring Practices

Officials from the labour department visited Apple supplier Foxconn’s factory in Tamil Nadu this week to investigate the company’s hiring practices.

A five-member team from the regional labour department conducted the visit on Monday (July 1), and spoke to company directors and executives from the human resources department after a report alleged that the company was rejecting married women for iPhone assembly jobs, news agency Reuters reported.

“We are collecting information, and have asked the company to submit documents like company policies, recruitment policies as well as evidence of compliance with labour laws and information on maternity and retirement benefits,” A. Narasaiah, the regional labour commissioner, was quoted as saying in the report.

Narasaiah said that Foxconn informed that the Chennai factory employs a total of 41,281 workers, including 33,360 women. Among these women, approximately 2,750, or about 8%, are married, according to the information provided by Foxconn.

This comes a few days after a report by Reuters said that Foxconn allegedly practised discriminatory hiring practices and excluded married women from jobs at its iPhone assembly facility Sriperumbudur.

Foxconn refuted the allegations of any employment discrimination based on marital status, gender, religion or any other form, but the issue created a national furore. Following this, the Ministry of Labour and Employment sought a detailed report from the state government on the matter.

The ministry noted that the allegations, if true, would be a clear violation of the Section 5 of the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976. The provision stipulates no discrimination in recruitment on the basis of gender.

Besides seeking clarity from the state government, it also directed the office of Regional Chief Labour Commissioner to furnish a factual report on the incident.

Meanwhile, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) also sought a detailed report on the issue from the central labour ministry and the state government.

The developments come at a time when Apple is aggressively expanding its production in India.

Foxconn, which is the world’s largest contract manufacturer and is responsible for assembling around 70% of iPhones, is currently constructing a new facility in Karnataka.