Samsung still finds child labor at supplier

Samsung has nevertheless found child labor at a supplier in China, despite previously saying it had not found any employees under the age of 18. Presumably these are children who are given papers to pretend to be older.

Samsung says it will cut ties with the factory if it finds evidence that the facility hired the children on purpose. The child workers were found at Shinyang, a factory in the Chinese region of Dongguan. A total of 600 people work at the factory.

Samsung’s conclusion comes as no surprise: action group China Labor Watch released a report last week with detailed information and photos of child labor at the factory, where workers assemble parts for Samsung smartphones. It showed that an intermediary is trying to find schoolchildren as young as 14 in poorer regions to have them work in factories during holidays; during this period it is precisely the busiest times in factories. These students usually work up to 11 hours a day. Those students get papers to pretend to be older, because working under the age of 16 is illegal in China.

China Labor Watch learned about the abuses after an activist from the group went undercover, recording conversations with at least five colleagues who were found to be under 16. He also took pictures of the conditions in the factory.

Samsung’s previous audit took place on June 25, and according to the South Korean company, the supplier took on the students from June 29. That is in line with the story of China Labor Watch that it concerns too young holiday workers. It is unknown how often employing schoolchildren who are too young still occurs in China. In an inspection of a hundred suppliers, Samsung recently found no child labor.