Factories making Apple iPhones and iPads forced staff to sign pledges not to commit suicide before they were taken on. At least 14 workers at Apples Chinese supplier Foxconn have killed themselves in 16 months.
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One executive accused victims of doing it to win compensation payouts for grieving relatives. And in the aftermath of the tragedies, people seeking jobs at the giant factories were ordered to make written promises not to follow suit. They even had to vow that if they did, their families would not claim more than the legal minimum in damages.
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The wave of suicides came as worldwide demand for iPhones and iPads rocketed, forcing staff to put in up to 98 hours of overtime a month almost three times the limit in Chinese law. Foxconn insist they had to break the law to hit targets, even though excessive overtime is banned by international law and Apples own code of conduct.
The computer giant founded by Steve Jobs netted s3.5billion profit in the first quarter of this year alone. But the basic pay for Chinese workers is as little as s5 a day.
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