Cheaper Product Costs Can Sometimes Come with a Higher Price Apple is a large multinational corporation with a well-known reputation as the world’s second-largest information technology company. They are one of the top 10 American companies and one of the most valuable brands in the world. Apple has several different suppliers throughout the world that they partner with for their supply chain. As a well-known company, you might think that they are cautious about who they choose to do business with. Apple recently admitted that they were doing business with several suppliers that have been using child labor. Apple’s 2013 Supplier Responsibility report exposed that there were over 100 cases of children employed by several of their technology suppliers during 2012. One of the suppliers, Foxconn, is a Taiwanese company that assembles iPad and iPhone products. While is based out of Taiwan, many of its operations are in China. The company was hiring interns who were as young as 14 and were well under China’s legal working age .China’s labor law requires a person to be at least 16 years of age to be working. Foxconn has also had several employees commit suicide due to the horrible working conditions and long working hours there. Apple has recently attempted to sell their iPhones to different markets who may not be able to afford a $500 cell phone. They have been seeking to find suppliers that were cheaper in order to be able to sell their phones at a more affordable cost. Child labor and poor working conditions were some of the main variables in keeping the costs low with some of these suppliers. Foxconn reported that hiring the underage interns was an “accident” because they weren’t thorough in checking the students IDs and confirmi... ... middle of paper ... ...ny in order to sustain a good reputation and ensure ethical business practices. A company’s character traits can enable them to act in accordance with reason. Possessing good virtues is what makes a company or person moral and actions taken reflect those virtues. Apple has possessed some unmoral virtues that have caused them to do business with an unethical company. These traits can hurt their business and could cause the public to no longer purchase from them. Walmart is prime example, when people found out about how they were treating their employees. There are several people who choose not give them business. Apple is attempting to earn trust back from the public by doing what is necessary to turn things around with their suppliers. They have stated that will not tolerate inhumane working conditions or the use of child labor and are becoming more accountable.
Garside, Juliette. "Child labour uncovered in Apple's supply chain." The Guardian. The Guardian, 25 Jan 2013. Web. 7 Apr 2014. .
When the Fair Labor Association completed its audit they found the following problematic issues. For example, during peak production periods, operated by the Taiwanese firm Foxconn, had exceeded 60 hours per week, and many employees were also required to work more than seven consecutive days before having a day off. According to Apple’s code of conduct, an employee is only required to work 40 hours a week, and should receive a day off after working 5 days. In addition Apple noted, 14% of workers that worked overtime were not receiving fair pay for overtime. The Chinese factor...
Apple is dedicated to above average standards of social and environmental responsibility and ethical conduct. It is also necessary that Apple’s suppliers handle workers with dignity and respect, provide safe working conditions, act fairly and ethically, and use environmentally responsible practices wherever they make products or perform services for Apple. Apple requires employees to function and adhere within the principles of the Apple Code, Credo and comply with all pertinent laws and regulations. Apple goes above and beyond—instead of just being compliant with the law they also make it a point to draw upon internationally recognized standards to advance social
During the years before 2012, loyal Apple customers were in protest and petition when they found out that the labor conditions of Apple in Foxconn were unaccepted, the issue emerged to a worldwide attention. Also, the customers did not want to buy Apple products anymore because of the increasing number of accidents or suicidal in Foxconn. The employees were working in a dangerous environment and living in dorms that looked like a prison. These issues came to the attention that Apple decided to join Fair Labor Association, a monitoring group including at least 43 violations of Chinese Laws and regulations.
Further investigations revealed Foxconn had been guilty of unsafe and unfair working environments long before the incidents, which included the employment of extended working hours, discrimination, and military management techniques (Xu & Li, 2013). Due to Foxconn’s sole focus on maintaining businesses relationships by fulfilling Apple’s demand of technical products, their subsequent mistreatment of employees was exacerbated and generated 80-100 hours of forced overtime per week (Xu & Li, 2013). However, in an attempt to combat the negative publicity, each firm denied responsibility for the incidents, which ultimately added fuel to the media fire (Xu & Li, 2013). Since then, each firm has enacted superior regulations designed to maintain efficiency while recognizing limitations on labor hours and increased spending on compliance audits (Chandler & Werther, 2014). Yet, as Foxconn continues to sustain their global leadership and Apple’s profits remain unaffected, the disadvantages associated with the incidents at Foxconn have not transcended the outcomes. From a profit standpoint, the increase in spending and subsequent alterations of labor methods serve as the biggest disadvantage to each company’s bottom line. However, after both companies attempted to negate blame, their ensuing developments indicate assuming responsibility was the best avenue to recoup reputation issues and focus on long-term growth. Therefore, the greatest advantage for both companies was their heightened reputation resulting from increased transparency and the employment of business models focused on the welfare of all supply chain
Apple has garnered a competitive advantage through all aspects of the supply chain. On the production front, Apple has made many high-priced
Many companies today are working towards making sure their businesses are running smoothly and being responsible when it comes to employment practices and ethical standards. Apple, for instance, is one of the many companies that has recently found out that not all regions it has factories in are following the guidelines necessary for running.
has an enormous influence among its customers is because of the company’s corporate social responsibility initiatives. Consumers see that the company cares not only about making a profit, but about the planet and that is one of the reasons that they choose Apple products over any other company. Apple is so dedicated to environmental issues that they even have a page where any consumer can view what they are doing and how they are doing it. In the Apple website states, “In 2015, 93 percent of the company energy came from renewable sources. And we are constantly looking for ways to reach 100 percent.” (Apple.com) In addition, the company is involved in other very important initiatives such as; supporting local communities, water consumption, recycling, and CO2 emission. One can say that Apple Inc. is not only developing the newest technologies, but is also trying to figure out ways to become a more environmental friendly
Steve jobs’ ignored the labor conditions for the employees who worked in China (Williams, 2012). According to Williams (2012), “the dark side of Apple and perhaps a reflection of Jobs’ leadership style are the labor conditions in Apple’s Foxconn manufacturing plants in China. In reaction to a spate of worker suicides where fourteen died in 2010, a report by twenty Chinese universities described Foxconn factories as labor camps and detailed widespread worker abuse and illegal overtime.”Also, Steve Jobs imposed harsh conditions on employees in order to keep Apple’s information in a safe place (Williams, 2012). According to Williams (2012), “Steve Jobs imposed harsh punishments on individuals who violated the secrecy rule by sharing information
"Samsung Electronics said it has found "evidence of suspected child labour" at a factory of its Chinese supplier Dongguan Shinyang Electronics. The firm conducted an investigation into the supplier after New York-based campaign group, China Labor Watch, accused it of hiring children." - - - BBC - 14 July 2014
is yet to reach its maximum potential. Truly a unique entity in its accomplishments and organization, apple through the conviction and leadership of Steve Jobs its founder and then CEO; have pioneered the revolution of mobile technology. When it comes to strength, apple Inc, has a great marketing team with great marketing and advertisement capabilities, strong brand awareness, a strong and extensive distribution channel, and most of all a vertical integration and the most obvious which is customer loyalty. With the acquisition of valuable companies such as Beats, WhatsApp, mobile payment systems with the IPhone 6, wearable gadgets like the IWatch, apple uses these opportunities to satisfy its loyal
Apple is a company that has been round for many years. There are over 55 million people who use an apple product or are considered to have at least one apple product in their home. The apple products range from larger devices such as there amazingly known Mac books which are there computer based system to there much small hand held based device called the iPhone. That device allows a person to make calls all while have the convent amenities that a laptop would have. They also have the very popular iPod as well as Apple TV. They have expanded into an empire that everyone is trying to become as well as beat. As many people know there is history and hard work that has to take place in order for a business to be successful. Many people will refer to the success of apple as the underdog company that made despite the odds. Founder Steve Jobs was a regular person with a dream. He started of building an Apple computer in his parent’s living room and later moved to the garage true to lack of space. Later on in his building career a neighbor of Steve Jobs introduced him to Stephen Gary Wonzniak. Wonzniak was an engineer and Jobs was a market maven and together they have the skills to build and properly promote. The computer they were trying to promote was fairly expensive computer. Jobs was so dedicated to this idea of transforming this computer from what it was to something that is able to be sold to the public he reached out to Bill Hewlett and asked him to donate some parts for a class projects .
Computers and technology makes it easier for entrepreneurs to enter this market. Not only are major tech companies competing against one another, but they are also competing against little programmers that know how to code. In our time you will never know with certainty when a small group of engineers or computer scientists are going to create, “next big thing”. Apple has been able to have a competitive advantage over its competitor by creating the highest quality products and services. Some of Apple’s current competitors are Microsoft, Google, and Facebook, and a few other tech companies as well. Most people strongly people Apple is one of the stronger company its industry, but then again some other people have biased views. Financially, they are the strongest company in the world. Also people are always willing to pay a premium for their products because of their durability, quality, and prior experiences with Apple products. Apple is always on the look at for new innovative ideas and concept that are being produced by self-motivated entrepreneurs. They are always looking to hire bright minds and let them develop within the company. A lot of entrepreneurs, programmers and engineers do not have a problem working for Apple because of their well-established perks. Apple offers its employees of the best benefits in the world. They also fairly compensate their employees that work in the front-end store as
Having poor working conditions impacts the society in such a way that workers are depressed and do not work in peace. Apple should look for ways in which their suppliers can offer working conditions that are humane. If the current suppliers do not improve their working conditions, then Apple should consider looking for other suppliers since the working conditions of their workers should be of most priority (Apple Inc. 2016). Moreover, having good working conditions will attract more qualified personnel into the company, thus increasing the quality of their products. However, the main problem in Apple making sure that their suppliers offer better working conditions is that Apple has no legal liability in any operation that happens in China factories since their ownership is by separate manufacturers. It, therefore, gives Apple the dilemma of choosing between what is correct morally and what is correct legally. It also represents situations that are unfortunate since an action of being socially responsible is not what is best for the running of the business as using cheap labour to minimise cost has led to Apple to achieve margins that are spectacular and profits on its products (Dhaliwal 2011, 59-100). Apple should keep in mind that the aim of business is not always based on making profits since long-term goals are
One of Apple’s major ethical issues is the problem of labor. This is a very important problem in today’s world because businesses have a tendency to ignore basic human rights in their never ending competition to make as much money as possible. Outsourcing, using child labor, and overworking employees are all major ethical and legal violations committed all the time by many high profile companies, and often unjustly ignored as it is unfair to the people forced to work in such terrible conditions.