Advertisement
Worker exodus, Covid-19 lockdown in world’s largest iPhone factory hit Apple supply chain in China
- An unknown number of workers have fled the iPhone production plant run by Foxconn Technology Group in Zhengzhou as Covid-19 cases flare
- At least 10 per cent of the global iPhone production capacity is affected by the situation in the Zhengzhou campus, one analyst said
Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
1
Coco Fengin Beijing
An exodus of panicked workers, fearing Covid-19 lockdowns and infections in the world’s largest iPhone factory in the central Chinese city of Zhengzhou, could slow the production of Apple’s flagship device in the coming months.
Advertisement
Foxconn Technology Group, which runs the plant, promised on Sunday to help arrange transport for workers wanting to go back to their hometowns, after video clips widely circulating on social media showed some fleeing the compound on foot and walking in fields and on highways because public transport in the city was suspended as part of Covid-19 controls.
The factory in the capital of Henan province employs around 300,000 workers. Neither Foxconn, also known as Hon Hai Technology Group, nor the Zhengzhou government has disclosed how many workers are leaving or are in quarantine.
Foxconn has set up seven pickup points for workers leaving the campus, according to the company’s latest notice. Local authorities in other cities in Henan, where many Foxconn workers come from, have also rushed to arrange coaches to take people home.
Advertisement