Foxconn workers strike over rigid iPhone 5 quality control

Thousands of workers assembling Apple's latest smartphone - the iPhone 5 - yesterday went on strike over what is described as excessively strict demands on quality control, according to a report from advocacy group China Labor Watch.

Three to four thousand production workers walked off the job at the Zhengzhou factory after Foxconn raised overly strict demands on product quality without providing training for the corresponding skills.

This led to workers turning out the iPhone 5 that did not meet standards, leading to conflicts with quality control inspectors.

The majority of 3,000 to 4,000 workers who took part in the strike were from the onsite quality control line. According to workers, multiple iPhone 5 production lines from various factory buildings were in a state of paralysis for the entire day.

It is said that factory management and Apple, despite design defects, raised strict quality demands on workers, including indentations standards of 0.02mm and demands related to scratches on frames and back covers. With such demands, employees could not turn out iPhones that met the standard.

This led to a tremendous amount of pressure on workers. On top of this, they were not permitted to have a vacation during the recent weekend holiday.