New Apple supplier concerns drag share down

By Ed Sutherland on Mar 11, 2013

Spring is just around the corner, the sun is shining and new concerns about Apple suppliers appear like so many dandelions. Never mind CEO Tim Cook said it’s impossible to determine the health of the iPhone maker simply by looking at suppliers.

Just as Washington, DC trades in political rumors, Wall Street and Silicon Valley are back with new scuttlebutt about Apple’s supply chain.

As a result, Apple’s stock dipped lower Monday on word that orders to suppliers were the worst on record – at least for one analyst. Others believe higher sales of iPad minis versus the larger tablet is cause for concern, while still others forecast a slow summer and then return to profitability… Read More

 

Apple suppliers hit 99% compliance for working hour limits in January

By Cody Lee on Mar 6, 2013

About this time last year, Apple was dealing with a wealth of bad press over the working conditions at its Asian suppliers. The New York Times painted a particularly bleak picture of the situation, with underpaid, underaged, overworked employees.

Since then, the company has really stepped up its game in supplier responsibility. The companies who used underage workers have been cut, workers have received pay raises, and as of January, 99% of them came in under the 60-hour work week limit… Read More

 

Apple lists California-based Quanta Computer plant as Mac assembler

By Cody Lee on Jan 25, 2013

Back in November, some folks started seeing “Assembled in the USA” etched into the backs of their iMacs. This obviously led to the conclusion that Apple has been quietly moving some of its assembly operations from China to the United States.

Today we learn where, at least some of, those Macs are being put together. In a recent update to its Supplier Responsibility page, Apple has named Quanta Computer Inc., in its Fremont, California plant, as a final assembler for its Mac computers… Read More

 

Apple drops supplier after audit finds underage workers

By Cody Lee on Jan 25, 2013

Apple released its latest Supplier Responsibility report late last night, detailing 339 audits focused on the plants and suppliers that help make its hardware. These were internal audits, which are separate from those performed by the Fair Labor Association.

While Apple was quick to point out supplier compliance, an impressive 92%, it also mentioned that it has severed its relationship with a China-based third-party labor supplier after discovering a conspiracy to employ dozens of underage workers… Read More