The Korean company Samsung, the world's largest mobile phone seller, has rejected allegations by a children's rights organization that minors are working in one of the Chinese factories where components for the company are manufactured.
The US-based non-governmental organization China Labor Watch (CLW) claims in a report released today that children under the age of 16 are working at the Huizhou city factory of the South Korean company HEG Technology.
The youngest of them is 14 years old, according to the same NGO.
HEG Technology, which also makes components for Chinese computer company Lenovo, also employed 117 students, who are forced to work up to 12.5 hours a day on average.
The students have now left the company, but they complain that they have not received their full salary.
For its part, Samsung responded that a recent inspection at this factory did not identify any underage workers.
"The inspection showed that no children or students are working on the Samsung Electronics production line at the HEG factory," the company said in a statement.
She notes that she had suggested to the NGO that a joint investigation be conducted before the publication of its report. “We regret that CLW published falsehoods (…) without mentioning our proposal” for a joint investigation, she added.
"We attach great importance to the health and safety of our employees and those of our suppliers and have zero tolerance for child labor," Samsung stressed.
In 2012, the NGO again denounced working conditions at the HEG factory. Samsung admitted that there were “inappropriate practices” regarding working hours.
Samsung announced in July that it had suspended its cooperation with another Chinese company, Dongguan Shinyang Electronics Co., which CLW had also accused of using workers under the age of 16.
Source: defencenet.gr
