Foxconn Technology Group is a company in China that makes products for many of our leading companies here in the United States, such as, Apple, Dell, Hewlett-Packard and Microsoft. In 2010, 12 employees of Foxconn committed suicide and numerous failed suicide attempts due to oppressive conditions of the company. Workers would jump from 15 story building due to the working conditions and hours. The company employed 1 million workers with a turnover rate of 40 percent. Workers only made minimum wage which, in 2010 was around $130 per month. Workers would work on average over 3 times the legal limit of hours for anyone (Bethel University). Apple was under scrutiny the most when the suicides happened due to the Apple being a very popular company. …show more content…
Recently the suicide rate has dropped by half. This decline has been accredited to people moving out of the rural where suicide was done by ingesting pesticides, into the city where suicide by this method is rare. In 1999 the suicide rate was 23 per 100,000 people; however, in 2011, the rated dropped drastically to 9.8 per 100, 000 people. Another alarming suicide rate that was high was among women in China. Women suicide rate is significantly higher than that of Chinese men. The age range of the women was between the ages 15-34. The suicide was said to be attributed to the one child policy or the pressure marry early in China. In many countries women are thought to be lesser than men and very strict rules on how women should live their life and be treated. The women suicide rate in China was 37.8 per 100, 000 in the late 1990’s, dropping to 3 per 100,000 in 2011 …show more content…
In July 2015, Foxconn announced they will be expanding its company into India, building 12 factories and creating jobs for 1 million people. The project is set to be completed by 2020. India was thrilled about the prospect of becoming another manufacturing powerhouse next to China; however, the labor laws in India have restricted the project from moving forward (Crabtree). Chinas wages has increased following the publicity that the company received after the string of suicides in 2010. To combat the bad press, Foxconn doubled wages for employees and sought other avenues to increase worker satisfaction within the
Kane, Y. I. and K. Scannell (2009). Apple bests downturn, but faces SEC probe. Accessed on February 15, 2009 at: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123255729957302873.html.
World health Organization (WHO) (2011). Facts and figures, Suicide. Retrieved November 2, 2011 from http://www.WHO.int
A 17 year old boy, Douglas Stewart, came home from school to find his mother lying on the sofa with a strained back. Being concerned for her he rubbed her back briefly then put on some easy listening music. Douglas then proceeded downstairs to his bedroom. Two of his friends came to the door. His mother waited to see if he would return to answer it; minutes later she answered and then yelled for him to come up. When he did not come, she went downstairs to get him. That is when she found him strangled and her son’s body dangling from the ceiling. This is a senseless tragic sight for a mother to endure. The mortality rate from suicide in 1996 showed 9.5 per 100,000 for 15-19 year olds. This also shows boys are four times more likely to commit suicide then girls. However, girls are twice as likely to attempt suicide. (American 1996) It is imperative to reverse this trend and in doing so we need to understand the characteristics, behaviors and events associated with youth suicide.
Not only is the pay and work hours bad, the jobs are dangerous too. One man lost two of his fingers in a machine and after being taken to the hospital, his boss furious for having to pay for the bill, is expected to go back to work in excruciating pain to pay off the medical bill (Lee-Potter 2007). In a Chinese sweatshop in Italy a fire broke out and killed 7 people. Because of all the dust and fabric on the floor, the fire spread quickly trapping workers inside due to iron bars on windows to keep them in (Aloisi 2013). The reason for those 7 workers to still be at the factory is that they were sleeping in “cardboard cubicles” (Aloisi 2013). Most workers cannot afford to have homes outside of the factories and sleep where they work. When factories are shut down, its inhabitants are
“Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.” - Phil Donahue. As a complex, tragic public health issue, suicide occurs in men significantly more often than in women. Suicide is simply defined as the act of intentionally ending one’s own life, but the factors that play into a person making that decision are anything but simple. The most obvious and severe effect of suicide is the loss of a valuable, meaningful human life. According to Harvard School of Public Health (n.d.), suicide affects parents, children, siblings, friends, lovers and spouses; the loss for society is psychological, spiritual, and financial. People who lose a loved one to suicide often experience devastating effects and deal with a complex grief. These “suicide survivors” typically feel a range of emotions from sadness, blame, and guilt to extreme anger and confusion. “Suicide among males is four times higher than among females and represents 79% of all U.S. suicides” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, 2012). This gender paradox is one of the most compelling components regarding who is most at risk to attempt suicide. Why is it that men commit suicide more often than women? More than four times as many men as women die by suicide because depressed men are less likely to seek out help, men typically use more violent, lethal methods and cannot be resuscitated, and men carry the pressure of employment, providing for and protecting a family, and maintaining relationships.
Suicide is the third leading cause of death among people of 15-24 years old. Among Asian Americans, female Chinese Americans have a relatively higher suicide rate. Depression, stress, alcohol and drugs are main reasons as to why someone would commit suicide and female attempts are more found three times more often. In the book Ona was on downers which could have resulted in overdose and risked her attempts and increased her impulsivity. She was also experiencing problems within her life dealing with her family and relationship. When a person feels that they are no longer in control of their lives they tend to give up such as Ona did. She felt she was a burden to her
Lee, Kori. "Eastern vs. Western Views of Death and Suicide." HubPages. 15 Jan. 2013. Web. 09 Apr. 2014. Web.
Suicide is a sad story many people are reluctant to approach. But when somebody nearest to them kills themselves, they feel the compelling guilt of trying to understand the motive behind the death. It is a complex and rather devastating subject. Many who kill themselves can never come back to tell us what happened and why it did. Suicide takes an emotional toll on it's survivors and wreck havoc in the wake of the surrounding victims. What causes suicide is a probing series of many theories, and yet not one definitive answer. The prevention of suicide is also difficult to pinpoint, but only because the intent is unknown. The importance of researching the motives of the suicidal is essential to modern humanity as a whole, because in the era we live in, suicide rates are climbing faster than ever. Understanding the driving force behind suicide is what can help the field of social science to save the conscience mind of many people from self-destruction - and save their lives, and the emotions of their loved ones.
The central facts for Foxconn involved protest by 150 of the 32,000 employees at its campus in the city of Wuhan in China and suicides by 18...
The major competitors of Apple are Dell and Samsung out of which Samsung is the
In Foxconn, There are many problems can lead to worker 's suicide. Hourly wages and meals, living conditions, hours of work and harsh working condition. If Foxconn can greatly reduce these problems immediately, the health of employees will be guaranteed.
Foxconn, one of Apple’s major manufacturer’s, recently had a breakout of suicides amongst their workers because the working conditions were so awful. Workers are often forced to work continuous shifts through meal times and work up to 100 hours overtime in a single month, even though the legal limit is a mere 36. And to make it even worse, Foxconn now makes their employees sign a contract saying that if an employee commits suicide as a result of the horrendous conditions, the family is not even allowed to sue them. Instead of cutting ties with Foxconn upon recei...
Women of China have their own opinions when it comes to their families, being under a controlled government and being told how many children they can have only makes it harder if them. Also China’s Health Ministry estimates that in the four decades since the imposition of the one-child policy more than 336 million abortions have taken place in the nation. Nora...
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
According to a Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) study of 2008/09 done by the ministry of health and population in Nepal, suicide was found to be the leading cause of death among the Nepalese women. Nepal is a landlocked country with the population of 26.5 million among whom 51.5% are female while 48.5% are male (Central Bureau of Statistics, 2011) . Nepal offers a variety of diversity in regards to its religion, values, ethnicities, and geography, which have a huge impact on the socio-economic status of the people. In addition, Nepal is hugely a patriarchal society with a transparent social and economic disparity throughout the country due to its hindu caste- based hierarchy. As a result we can see that there is a huge unequal gap between the marginalized and disadvantaged groups who are usually the people at the bottom of the caste hierarchy (untouchables or Dalit and Janajati).