Foxconn workers clash with police at Covid-hit plant in China; company apologises

New Delhi: Foxconn workers clashed with police on Wednesday night as protests erupted over salaries and conditions at its company’s vast iPhone factory premises at Zhengzhou in central China, with the company issuing an apology citing “technical error” in its payment systems.

The sprawling facility employing more than 200,000 people has been under strict Covid-19 controls for weeks.

CHINA: Protests getting out of hand at Foxconn iPhone plant in Zhengzhou tonight where workers are rebelling against Covid harsh restrictions and work environment pic.twitter.com/xwe2oAHYge

— Joyce Karam (@Joyce_Karam) November 23, 2022

In a video shared on Twitter, a huge crowd of workers can be see clashing with riot police and personnel in hazmat suits. The workers can be seen holding sticks and other material as they march ahead.

In another video, a worker can be seen picking a police shield as he heads to join the protests.

Zhengzhou Foxconn, a worker picked up a special police shield during the chaos last night.#TheGreatTranslationMovement pic.twitter.com/5r8Dtg543S

— The Great Translation Movement 大翻译运动官方推号 (@TGTM_Official) November 24, 2022

Foxconn, the biggest contract assembler of smartphones and other electronics, is struggling to fill orders for the iPhone 14 after thousands of employees walked away from the factory in the central city of Zhengzhou last month following complaints about unsafe working conditions.

According to reports, the confrontations broke out after employees who signed an agreement with the factory to work at least 30 days in return for a one-time payment of 3,000 yuan ($420) suddenly saw the figure slashed to just 30 yuan.

However, after the protests erupted the Taiwanese tech giant on Thursday apologised for a “technical error” in its payment systems.

“Our team has been looking into the matter and discovered a technical error occurred during the onboarding process,” a Foxconn statement said without going into detail.

“We apologize for an input error in the computer system and guarantee that the actual pay is the same as agreed.”

“At present, the park is continuing to actively communicate with the employees affected by the wrong information, explaining that the salaries and bonuses of all employees are paid in accordance with company policies,” the statement added.

With inputs from agencies

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