Investigation Reveals Harsh Working Conditions at Foxconn's iPhone 17 Production Facility

The investigation revealed numerous labor rights violations at Foxconn's iPhone manufacturing facility.

Workers at Chinese factories endured challenging conditions while racing to prepare Apple Inc.'s new iPhone 17 series for market, according to findings published by China Labor Watch.

Employees at Foxconn Technology Group's Zhengzhou facility, Apple's manufacturing partner, experienced wage retention practices, excessive overtime demands, and mandatory night shifts, the non-profit organization reported on Thursday. The investigation covered the period from March to September, during which Apple and its suppliers were preparing the latest iPhone models for release.

The report identified several labor rights issues and claimed Foxconn violated Chinese regulations by employing an excessive percentage of temporary "dispatch" workers. It also attributed the challenging working environment to "unstable orders," creating conditions where factory employees face constant pressure and intimidation.

Apple responded to the allegations by stating they are "firmly committed to the highest standards of labor, human rights, environmental and ethical conduct."

"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," the company stated. "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."

Foxconn's Zhengzhou complex—often referred to as iPhone city due to its massive scale—employed between 150,000 and 200,000 workers during the March-September period, according to the report. Temporary workers reportedly constituted over 50% of the total workforce, which the watchdog group claims is "five times the legal limit under Chinese law."

China Labor Watch reported that Foxconn's payment structure, which withholds a portion of wages until the following month, resulted in some dispatch workers losing weeks of overtime compensation if they resigned before specific cutoff dates. The report also claimed that excessive overtime continues to be a widespread issue.

"Most workers clocked 60 to 75 hours per week, well above China's legal maximum and Apple's own 60-hour weekly cap," the organization stated. China Labor Watch documented Apple employees' presence at the Zhengzhou facility, suggesting that the US company's representatives "are aware of the working conditions."

Foxconn, also known as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., did not immediately respond when asked to comment on these allegations.

The report highlighted concerns regarding coercion of young student workers, alleging they were frequently assigned to night shifts with inadequate compensation. China Labor Watch also claimed evidence of discriminatory hiring practices excluding multiple ethnicities, exposure to hazardous chemicals without proper protective equipment, and widespread harassment and intimidation. "Workers who raised complaints were subjected to surveillance, threats and even the public release of personal information," according to the organization.

China Labor Watch stated that "many" of these issues have deteriorated since their previous investigation in 2019. However, they acknowledged minor improvements in certain areas, such as total overtime hours. In the earlier report, workers accumulated an average of 100 to 130 overtime hours monthly during peak production—though some employees still reached similar totals in 2025. The current investigation found no instances of underage workers at Foxconn's facility, after having identified "some vocational school minors" in 2019.

While the Zhengzhou facility remains the global production center for Apple's smartphones, the American company has been diversifying its manufacturing network. Earlier this year, Apple expanded iPhone production in India to meet the majority of US demand—a strategy aimed at reducing the impact of tariffs on products exported from China.

Apple publishes annual supply chain reports and claims to collect weekly working hours data for more than 1.4 million supplier employees. In 2024, the company conducted 1,514 audits across its global supply chain and interviewed over 74,000 supplier employees.

Of the 10 core violations Apple uncovered last year, nine involved "falsification violations resulting from improperly reported working hours data and one was a health and safety violation related to machine safety practices that did not meet our standards," according to the company's 2025 report.