Conditions in Samsung?s Chinese plants remain alarming

South Korean electronics behemoth Samsung vowed to end legal and safety violations in its Chinese assembly plants by the end of 2012. However, Samsung’s new annual sustainability report contains the results of an audit showing that violations have continued.

According to the Financial Times:

“The new audit, conducted last year, showed that 59 of 100 suppliers inspected failed to provide sufficient safety equipment or supervision to their workers, while 33 used fines or penalties to discipline workers.”

It appears that Samsung has eliminated underage labor in its Chinese plants, an improvement over previous years. But many factories use people under 18, half of whom are exposed to dangerous chemicals. Moreover, according to Gizmodo, “Most of the factories fail to comply with China's legally permitted overtime hours; a third don't provide social insurance.”

As long as Chinese workers are denied the right to independent trade unions, though, violations will continue to plague the workforce, no matter how noble the intentions of employers.

Samsung fails to eliminate Chinese labour violations (Financial Times, Jun. 30, 2014)

Samsung Labor Conditions Are Still Terrible (Gizmodo, Jul. 1, 2014)