Foxconn boss defends recruitment practices after report of rejected married women in India

Foxconn’s CEO on Saturday defended the company’s recruitment practices after New Delhi ordered an investigation into Reuters reports that an Apple supplier rejected married women when assembling iPhones.

“Foxconn employs regardless of gender, but women make up a significant portion of our workforce,” Young Liu said at the opening of a hostel complex for his employees near Chennai in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu.

“I would like to emphasize that married women contribute significantly to the efforts we are making here,” he added, making his first comments since the Reuters investigation.

Liu did not respond to media inquiries at the hostel complex, which the state government says is “exclusively” for Foxconn’s 18,720 female workers. The multi-story hostel buildings are located near a factory that makes iPhones.

A Reuters investigation published in June found that Foxconn systematically excluded married women from jobs at its main iPhone assembly plant in India because it said they had more family responsibilities than their unmarried colleagues.

Foxconn acknowledged some lapses in its hiring practices in 2022 and said it was working to address the issues, but added that it “strongly rejects allegations of employment discrimination.”

The story has sparked television debates and newspaper articles. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s federal government has ordered Tamil Nadu to prepare a “detailed report” on the matter, and its labor officials have also visited the iPhone plant to question executives. New Delhi has not yet released any findings.

Foxconn told labor officials that its main iPhone plant in India employs 41,281 people, including 33,360 women. Of those women, about 2,750, or about 8%, were married.

Reuters did not provide employment data broken down into specific areas, such as iPhone assembly, where the agency reported discrimination.

In recent years, Foxconn has expanded into India, where it produces iPhones and products for other smartphone brands, and also plans to enter the AirPods market and produce integrated circuits.

During his visit, Liu met with Prime Minister Modi and a number of senior Indian officials and discussed Foxconn’s investment plans.

© Thomson Reuters 2024

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