“Steve Jobs did not claim FoxConn’s problems as Apple’s problems, but they were often portrayed that way in the press. . . and then exaggerated to boot.” Chief Inspector Jacques Clouswordmaker
They were portrayed by Steve Jobs that way. He said twice in that interview...oh, you’re on an iPad, well when you can get on a Mac check out the actual video of the actual CEO of Apple at the time and notice that twice he says, we are on this. He was on it on behalf of Microsoft? HP? Sony?
Steve Jobs is telling you that they, Apple, were on these 13 suicides in 6 months. (His number.) This odd cluster that prompted the erection of suicide nets around the entire campus.
He started his response with, “Oh sure, we’re pretty on the top of that.” We, meaning collectively? All the computer companies in the world? Or we meaning US, all the people of the world?
He repeated it just for you as he was about to explain those suicides, “So I can tell you a few things that we know. And we’re all over this.”
Dance around that all you want, it’s never going to change unless you can get the Wall Street Journal to pull that video.
Hey, since you’ve figured out how to paste, could you send the names of those conservative board members. It’s been several weeks.
He accuses me of disagreeing with Steve Jobs, but he cannot comprehend that Steve Jobs is talking about "being on top" of a PR problem that WAS impacting Apple, because the press was reporting that it was an Apple problem. . . however, if you KNOW anything about the relationship between Apple and FoxConn, you know it is one of a very influential CUSTOMER and a supplier, not an owner to a subsidiary.
Apple, as did HP, sent an investigation commission to learn what was happening at the company that supplied a good deal of Apple's products. Apple also requested two independent, International labor organizations to investigate. . . Those are what is called in business, performing "due diligence:" finding out what is happening with a strategic partner. In other words, for those who a comprehension challenged, "being on top of a potential developing problem." Facts.
Apple, H-P to Examine Asian Supplier After String of Deaths at Factory
By JASON DEAN in Beijing and TING-I TSAI in Taipei
Updated May 27, 2010 12:01 a.m. ET
Amid a furor over suicides at a major supplier, Apple Inc., AAPL -0.42% Hewlett-Packard Co. AAPL -0.42% and other electronics companies said they are examining conditions at the Chinese factory and how the supplier has responded to the spate of workers' deaths.
The suicides at Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., which assembles iPads for Apple, computers for H-P and cellphones for Nokia Corp. NOK -0.82% , have put unprecedented scrutiny on the secretive company and have highlighted the changing nature of China's work force.
The tech companies' promises to investigate came before another Hon Hai worker died Wednesday in what police said was a suicide, and as the company's hard-charging chairman, Terry Gou, moved to contain the fallout.
Wednesday's incident, reported by state-run Xinhua news agency, marks the 10th time an employee at Hon Hai's sprawling Longhua complex in the southern city of Shenzhen has jumped to his or her death this year, most since April, with two more injured in failed attempts.
Given China's overall suicide rate—about 14 per 100,000 people—the deaths aren't statistically exceptional, but the quick succession is unusual.
Earlier Wednesday, the company gave a group of journalists a tour of Longhua, a walled-off complex with guarded gates and about 400,000 workers, and announced plans to outfit worker dormitories with safety nets to prevent more workers from jumping to their deaths.
"These last two months, I've been afraid to answer the phone late at night or early in the morning, because we've been unable to prevent these incidents from happening," the 59-year-old Mr. Gou told reporters at Longhua, which has dozens of factory buildings and worker dormitories. He expressed "regret" over the incidents, but defended Hon Hai's response. "We need time. But we have confidence and strong determination" to address the problem, he said.
The statements Wednesday from Apple, H-P and others were the first public comment on the suicides by customers of Hon Hai, which also goes by the trade name Foxconn. The Taiwan-based company, which employs some 820,000 workers throughout China, is the world's largest electronics contract manufacturer by revenue.
"We are saddened and upset by the recent suicides at Foxconn," Apple said, adding it had assigned a team to evaluate Hon Hai's efforts to address the suicides. Apple said it's in contact with Hon Hai management and "we believe they are taking this matter very seriously."
H-P, the world's biggest PC maker, said it "is investigating the Foxconn practices that may be associated with these tragic events." Nokia said "we have contacted Foxconn to ensure any issues are identified and addressed."
Dell Inc. said, "any reports of poor working conditions in Dell's supply chain are investigated and, if warranted, appropriate action is taken." Other Hon Hai customers, including Motorola Inc. and Nintendo Co., made similar statements.
Read more at the source. . .
As Steve Jobs said, "We", the FoxConn customers, including Apple, in fact most importantly Apple, from the BOARD OF DIRECTORS viewpoint, using the Royal and Corporate We, speaking for the board "are on top of it." That does not mean from an OWNERSHIP perspective. . . but from an interested party view. And, I repeat, Steve Jobs referred to "their" FoxConn's suicide problem, not "our" Apple's suicide problem.