Apple Inc. released its 2013 Supplier Responsibility Progress Report on Thursday in which emphasis was placed on their commitment to being upfront and honest about the results of their yearly audits among their suppliers. Apple suppliers, most of whom are in Asia, are required to comply with specific workplace ethics in order to maintain a business relationship with the technology giant.
Apple revealed that 393 audits were conducted, an increase of 72% compared to the number of audits conducted last year. Conducting these audits helps Apple to ensure that suppliers are complying with their expressed code of conduct as set by their ideals. Their mission is to empower workers, protect workers' rights and safeguard workers' health and well-being. To manage these special audits Apple collaborates with industry experts, the Institute of Public and Environmental (IPE) and Verité, a non-governmental organization (NGO). Apple also believes in reducing environmental impact. "We participate in the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC) and the Global e-Sustainability Initiative (GeSI) to promote the use of conflict-free minerals." wrote Apple in the report.
In 2012, Apple became the first technology company to join the Fair Labor Association (FLA). An independent large scale audit was conducted by the FLA at Foxconn, Apple's largest final assembly factory. The full reports and results were published on FLA's website. Providing full disclosure of audit results both positive and negative, Apple is committed to addressing supply industry issues such as excessive work hours and underage labor. Issues found are immediately reported and measures are taken to correct the situation and prevent it from occurring again.
Apple is straightforward in their approach and has a non-tolerance policy when it comes to underage labor. The Supplier Responsibility Progress Report reveals that some facilities were found to have underage workers as a result of non-detection of false documents submitted by factory workers. In instances were some suppliers knowingly hired underage workers, Apple immediately terminated their business relationship.
Apple Inc. in an unprecedented way is setting a new bar for industry standards of social responsibility. In the report, Apple says, "At Apple, we care just as much about how our products are made as we do about how they're designed. We know people have very high expectations of us. We have even higher expectations of ourselves."
