Fair Labor Association - Criticism

Criticism

The United Students Against Sweatshops, have stated that the FLA has "... a weak code that fails to provide for women's rights, a living wage, the full public disclosure of factory locations, or university control over the monitoring process." WAAKE-UP! was also critical of the Fair Labor Association as much of its funding comes from organizations it monitors, creating a potential conflict of interest. The organization FLA Watch monitors the Fair Labor Association.

On January 25, 2012, the New York Times published an extensive exposé of labor conditions at a supplier factory for Apple iPads in China called Foxconn. The report documented widespread violations of worker rights, including the use of excessive overtime, crowded dorms, and the use of poisonous chemicals causing worker fatalities. At least 19 Foxconn workers have attempted suicide or fell from buildings in manners that suggested suicide attempts.

Shortly before the publication of the New York Times story on Foxconn, on January 13, 2012, Apple became a dues paying corporate member of the FLA. The amount Apple pays the FLA in dues is not public information. Publicly available records indicate that the FLA's president and CEO Auret van Heerden has an annual base salary of $259,359.00.

On February 16, 2012, after taking a guided tour of Foxconn, FLA CEO Auret van Heerden said, "The facilities are first-class; the physical conditions are way, way above average of the norm." Mr. Van Heerden is also reported as saying “Foxconn is really not a sweatshop.” and “Workers are very outspoken and they’re not intimidated at all.”

Mr. van Heerden's praise of Foxconn's labor conditions were widely criticized. The New York Times noted that "Mr. van Heerden’s apparent praise of conditions at Foxconn came despite previous reports of employees committing suicide, dying in factory explosions and complaining of sometimes working more than 70 hours a week."

Worker Rights Consortium executive director Scott Nova said, "Generally, in a labor rights investigation, the findings come after the evidence is gathered, not the other way around. I'm amazed that the FLA would give one of the most notoriously abusive factories in the world a clean bill of health—based, it appears, on nothing more than a guided tour provided by the owner."

Heather White, the founder of monitoring group Verite, said about Van Heerden’s remarks: “That he would make any comments prior to workers being interviewed off-site in a confidential environment is somewhat premature, to say the least. He doesn’t speak Chinese and he is not a trained auditor qualified to make quick assessments.”

Mr. van Heerden also explained the rash of suicides at Foxconn as follows: ""I was very surprised when I walked onto the floor at Foxconn, how tranquil it is compared with a garment factory," he said. "So the problems are not the intensity and burnout and pressure-cooker environment you have in a garment factory. It's more a function of monotony, of boredom, of alienation perhaps."

Teresa Cheng, an international campaigns coordinator for United Students Against Sweatshops, was angered by Heerdeen's comments. "Mr. van Heerden's comments are outrageous and shocking, even to those of us who have been monitoring the FLA's irresponsible reporting for years," she told Fox News. "Attributing the suicides of sweatshop workers who make iPhones to mere boredom is insulting and the FLA's most creative argument to date for defending its corporate funders."