Update: Foxconn provided a statement to 9to5Mac regarding the report. Find it below. A new report by China Labor Watch accuses Apple of overlooking irregular and abusive work conditions at Foxconn Zhengzhou, one of its key suppliers. Here are the details. 6 years later, it appears little has changed China Labor Watch was founded in 2000, and describes itself as “an independent not-for-profit organization that advocates for workers’ rights, and supports the Chinese labor movement.” Throughout the years, the group has criticized and called attention to numerous alleged labor violations taking place at Apple suppliers, particularly at Pegatron and Foxconn. This week, China Labor Profit released a study comparing 2025 work conditions at Foxconn Zhengzhou with those in its 2019 report on the same factory. And while the report highlights the elimination of underage workers in 2025, in contrast to vocational school minors documented in 2019, it concludes that this was basically the sole improvement. From the report: “It is important to note that the Chinese authorities are not unaware of the aformentioned (sic) issues at Apple’s supplier factories. Instead, it has tolerated them in exchange for Apple’s technology transfers to China. One outcome of this bargain is that the new iPhone 17 is being mass-produced at Foxconn Zhengzhou. In addition, these findings demonstrate that far from being corrected, issues promised to address in 2019 remain in 2025, as summarized below.” They note that issues such as “wage system,” “ethnic/regional discrimination,” “information control, and “occupational safety” have worsened between 2019 and 2025, while issues such as “overtime hours,” “use of students,” “wage levels,” “training,” “union,” “gender/pregnancy discrimination,” and “dormitory conditions” remained unchanged. The report also notes that wages in 2025 were unchanged from 2019, with the official base pay remaining between 2,100 and 2,400 RMB (about $294–$336), rising to roughly 3,000 RMB ($420) with overtime and bonuses. Apple responds When asked about the report by The Straits Times, Apple said that it is “firmly committed to the highest standards of labour, human rights, environmental and ethical conduct”. The company also added: “Our suppliers are required to provide safe working conditions, treat workers with dignity and respect, act fairly and ethically, and use environmentally responsible practices wherever they make products or perform services for Apple. (…) We regularly conduct third-party audits, and anytime an issue is raised anywhere in our supply chain, we move swiftly to ensure that our high standards are upheld. In this case, Apple teams were on site and began an immediate investigation.” You can read the full report here. Update September 27, 2025, 6:18am PT: Foxconn has issued the following statement to 9to5Mac: Foxconn is an equal opportunity employer and we don’t stand for discrimination. The health and safety of our employees is our top priority. For the past two years, Foxconn has proactively undergone independent, third-party audits under the Responsible Business Alliance Validated Assessment Program (RBA VAP), demonstrating our commitment to critical compliance and transparency in social and environmental responsibility. Audit areas cover labor rights, occupational health and safety, environment, ethics and supply chain management. We publish the results and no priority findings were found in these audits. We welcome constructive dialogue with all stakeholders and are ready to share our improvement measures and progress. We’re open to external scrutiny to ensure our commitments are effectively met. Accessory deals on Amazon