SEOUL: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd said it halted business with a supplier in China over suspected use of child workers, the first time it has taken such a step, after criticism that its monitoring of labour practices at suppliers was inadequate.
The decision, announced yesterday, comes less than a week after US-based China Labour Watch said it found “at least five child workers” without contracts at the supplier and called Samsung’s monitoring process to halt such practices “ineffective.”
Samsung, the world’s biggest smartphone maker, said it conducted three audits since 2013 of the supplier, a wholly owned subsidiary of South Korea’s Shinyang Engineering Co Ltd, the latest of which ended on June 25.
But another investigation prompted by the watchdog’s report led to evidence of what Samsung called suspected child labour, pointing to holes in the tech giant’s ability to enforce its labour guidelines for Chinese suppliers. “The Chinese authorities are also looking into the case,” Samsung said in its statement.
It said it would permanently cut all ties with the supplier if the allegations were true, in line with its zero-tolerance policy on child workers.Reuters
