[illiderob]

May 27, 2010
Foxconn ups anti-suicide drive

SHENZHEN (China) - APPLE manufacturer Foxconn on Wednesday urged workers to sign contracts promising not to kill themselves to stem a spate of suicides - hours before the 11th worker this year fell to his death. The apparent suicides have raised questions about the conditions for millions of factory workers in China, especially at Foxconn's southern Chinese plant, where activists say long hours, low pay and high pressure are the norm.

The official Xinhua news agency, quoting a witness, said the latest victim at the firm's giant Shenzhen plant fell to his death around 11.20pm (1520 GMT. 11.20pm Singapore time), adding that Foxconn had confirmed the death. Hours earlier Foxconn's Taiwanese parent company had apologised publicly for the suicides. 'I give my apologies for the impact this has had on society,' said Terry Gou, chairman of Foxconn's Taiwanese parent company Hon Hai Precision, after flying into Shenzhen aboard his private jet for a hastily arranged media tour.

'I will do all I can to save lives.' But he defended the company's labour practices and speculated that some of the suicides may have been linked to personal or relationship problems. Foxconn employees must now agree to go to psychiatric institutions for their own protection if their mental health turns 'abnormal', according to reports. And the company was said to be hanging safety nets around buildings at its vast factory in Shenzhen after a 19-year-old worker fell to his death on Tuesday. Wednesday's death brings the toll of apparent suicides at the huge Shenzhen site this year to ten, with another death reported at a plant in northern China. -- AFP