TENTH SUICIDE FOR IPHONE MAKER, HOURS AFTER PROMISES OF WORPLACE IMPROVEMENTS

Reuters reports a 10th suicide late Wednesday for Foxconn, iPhone's manufacturing plant in China. No details have been given, except that the 23 year old worker jumped from a 7th story dorm balcony. Another employee slit his wrists but survived. Two others have been seriously injured after also jumping from buildings. Wtf?!


Foxconn, whose clients include Apple, Sony Erickson, and Hewlett Packard, has now been spotlighted for their labor practices.  Workers live inside the factory and crank out products for the world's technological giants "in round the clock shifts". Some of the factors behind the suicides (and the attempts) are said to be "because workers are living away from home with little care from society", according to a government official. Safety measures, such as hiring mental health counselors and installing netting around the building's perimeter, are in process. There are also ideas flying around about building sports and cultural facilities to improve the quality of living on the plant.

It is complete insanity that people are taking their lives because of work place conditions. Is it healthier to be unemployed altogether than to work under such strain? Hmmm.

Story via Reuters