New rules of society, which have been given to suppliers this morning, require that all student workers to join power line on their own, the New York Times reports. The rules, which Times obtained and published yesterday, also require that students have the opportunity to "leave work at any time on reasonable notice without repercussions."
Student labor is common in China. Suppliers across the country uses students to help their efforts in electronics manufacturing a wide range of suppliers, including HP.Back in September, the new output Shanghai Daily reported that Foxconn, which is one of providers HP, uses the work of students in the assembly of the iPhone. Samsung has been hit hard by the working group China Labour Watch, which said that its factories have been "abuse of student and worker division of labor." Both Samsung and Foxconn has denied reports of inadequate regulation of workers students.
It is not illegal to hire student workers in China. In fact, many companies, including Foxconn, hiring students in internship programs. The problem occurs when students in some schools suppliers are forced to work on the production line and did not really learn something to help them in their careers.
To remedy this, the policy also requires suppliers HP "complement the major field of study" for a student, according to the Times.
HP is by no means alone in his desire to solve the problems of students' work in China. In Apple supplier responsibility report it published last month (PDF), the company acknowledged that the efforts of student workers in China are "poorly managed, and the cyclical nature of the work placement, it is difficult identify problems. " This year, Apple will place new demands on suppliers so that it "can not follow this issue more closely."
