Apple puts Wistron on probation over Kolar plant violence

Last week, on the morning of December 12, several contract employees of Wistron ransacked the company's premises, factory equipment and burned the cars of the senior executives. 

A preliminary investigation from the labour department of Karnataka state government revealed that there were several lapses from Wistron and its employee hiring agencies. The company failed to resolve the late salary payment issue and discrepancies related to faulty work logging system.

Several employees despite working for close to 12 hours against the prescribed 8-hour shifts were paid less and also never received compensation for working overtime. 

Now, the Taiwanese company's primary client Apple has announced that it has put Wistron on probation and will no longer receive any new business from Apple before they complete corrective actions.

Here's the full statement from Apple
"Apple employees and independent auditors hired by Apple have been working around the clock to investigate the issues which occurred at Wistron’s Narasapura facility. While these investigations are ongoing, our preliminary findings indicate violations of our Supplier Code of Conduct by failing to implement proper working hour management processes. This led to payment delays for some workers in October and November.  

As always, our focus is on making sure everyone in our supply chain is protected and treated with dignity and respect. We are very disappointed and taking immediate steps to address these issues. Wistron has taken disciplinary action and is restructuring its recruitment and payroll teams in Narasapura. They have also set up an employee assistance program and a 24-hour grievance hotline in Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, and English to ensure all workers at the facility can voice any concerns, anonymously. 

We have placed Wistron on probation and they will not receive any new business from Apple before they complete corrective actions. Apple employees, along with independent auditors, will monitor their progress. Our main objective is to make sure all the workers are treated with dignity and respect, and fully compensated promptly.” 

Earlier today, Wistron also released a press statement acknowledging that senior executives failed to take corrective measures to resolve the issues faced by the employees. 

It has initiated disciplinary action and has removed the vice president who oversees Wistron's business in India. 

"We are also enhancing our processes and restructuring our teams to ensure these issues cannot happen again.  Our top priority is to ensure all workers are fully compensated immediately and we are working hard to achieve that.  We have established an employee assistance program for workers at the facility,'' Wistron said in a statement to DH.

"We are deeply committed to our business and employees in India. We are working diligently on corrective actions to ensure this does not happen again," Wistron added.

Must read | Wistron’s internal investigation finds lapses in wage payment

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