Food poisoning at a factory in India that manufactures Apple Inc.’s iPhones reportedly led to protests and subsequent detention of 70 women and 22 men.
What Happened
Over the week, an outbreak of “acute diarrhoeal disease” among employees of an iPhone factory run by Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd., better known as Foxconn, on the outskirts of Chennai caused considerable disquiet among the workers, reported Apple Insider.
District officials said 256 workers at the factory were treated as outpatients while 159 were hospitalized, as per Apple Insider.
Post the incident, protesting workers and their relatives blocked a highway. While the 70 women detained after the protest were reportedly released, some of the 22 men held by the police were formally arrested.
Why It Matters
There is no clarity if the food poisoning or the protests disrupted iPhone production. The facility manufactures iPhone 11 and iPhone 12, noted Apple Insider.
Another iPhone plant in South India, run by Taiwan’s Wistron Corporation, was rocked by protests last year.
Last month, Foxconn said it sees the supply chain crisis affecting electronics manufacturing to last until 2022. The company’s profit for the September quarter rose 20 percent year-over-year to $1.33 billion beating a consensus estimate of $1.14 billion.
By Shivdeep Dhaliwal
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