From Investing.com: 2024-11-17 23:20:53

Foxconn, an Apple supplier, has instructed hiring agents in India to remove age, gender, and marital criteria from job ads following a Reuters investigation. Previously, Foxconn excluded married women from jobs at its main iPhone assembly plant. Apple and Foxconn have anti-discrimination policies, but changes have been made to job advertising content.

Foxconn employs thousands of women at its iPhone factory in Sriperumbudur, India. Third-party vendors are responsible for recruiting assembly-line workers, screening candidates, and selecting employees for Foxconn. Job ads reviewed by Reuters revealed a requirement for unmarried women of specific ages, which contradicted anti-discrimination policies.

After the Reuters investigation, Foxconn directed Indian vendors to standardize recruitment materials according to company-provided templates and avoid mentioning age, marital status, or gender. Foxconn executives warned vendors against using the company’s name in ads and threatened to terminate contracts if they did so.

Despite changes in advertising content, it remains unclear if Foxconn has started hiring more married women for iPhone assembly roles. The company did not respond to questions about its directives to recruiters or whether restrictions on married women’s employment have been lifted. Apple declined to comment on the matter.

Indian labor officials conducted investigations into hiring practices at Foxconn’s iPhone factory following media scrutiny. The findings of these investigations have not been made public, and requests for the investigation report under India’s Right to Information Act were rejected due to confidentiality concerns. Federal and state officials have not disclosed the outcomes of their probes.

Foxconn Chairman Young Liu acknowledged the contributions of married women to the company during a visit to India in August. He met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss Foxconn’s investment plans in India. The scrutiny of Foxconn’s employment practices has led to changes in job advertising, but the impact on the company’s reputation remains to be seen.



Read more at Investing.com: Nix marital status in iPhone job ads By Reuters