As a follow up to a previous post of mine about the company Foxconn, one of China's largest manufacturers of electronics,they announced Saturday that they would raise pay for their workers and end some practice that Apple among other electronics companies found to be inhumane. The rise in pay and reduction of overtime and other practices were caused by a recent public outcry from both the Chinese and abroad. Last year Wired covered a story in which it reported that several employees had committed suicide at the company due to working conditions. I for one am overjoyed by the news of better pay and working conditions for the employees. Foxconn has been in the news most recently due to threats from employees that they would commit mass suicide if pay demands were not met, talk about a collective bargaining tool. It appears that the company has finally caved to the pressure of employees as well as Apple who is a major purchaser of the companies services and the technology industry media who reported it. I for one reported these atrocities and called on Apple to stop working with the company if company practices were not changed. Hopefully this we be the last we have to hear of Foxconn and their draconian practices. On the bright side Foxconn caving to outside pressure is a win in a long string of wins on the side of social justice garnered by social media and the so-called "web 2.0".
