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Apple and Foxconn win permission for 12-hour shifts for women in India

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Re: Apple and Foxconn win permission for 12-hour shifts for women in India

#151
post #75

The HN headline is incorrect. It’s not “12 hour shift for women”. It’s “12 hour shifts AND night shifts for women”. Night shift were not allowed earlier most likely because of safety reasons considering India’s not so great women safety record. Not saying it’s justified but that was the reason most likely.

That’s just made it even darker. Holy crap.

Re: Apple and Foxconn win permission for 12-hour shifts for women in India

#152

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can you elaborate what precisely is the issue with low female participation in a country's workforce?

It makes it harder for women who want to participate to participate. Simple as that. Women aren't commodities whose freedoms should be limited relative to men because of what it might do to "demographics and families." Women aren't slaves to be tied to home. They have agency and should be awarded the same legal freedoms as men.

It’s not that simple though. Being a house slave is bad, being a factory slave is too and that’s what others here are saying this is.

Perhaps this isn’t actual progress?

Re: Apple and Foxconn win permission for 12-hour shifts for women in India

#153

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can you elaborate what precisely is the issue with low female participation in a country's workforce?

The fact that half your workforce doesn't have an opportunity to contribute to the country's growth? I mean, cut the US or Europe's output by 25-30% (to match India's low female participation) and you're basically talking about eliminating decades of growth. People would be so much poorer and worse off. And that's just at the national level. There are a whole lot of other issues at the individual level, and the fact…

You do realize that prior to women entering the workforce a man, and his partner and three kids, working a full time factory job could lead a better lifestyle than two l5 engineers in CA can today, right?

Re: Apple and Foxconn win permission for 12-hour shifts for women in India

#154

Vote with your dollars, people. Don't buy Apple and Foxconn products if you care about the wellbeing of workers.

True. We wouldn’t want women to be able to earn as much as men in India. It’s important to take a principled stand against gender parity and punish these guys with your wallet.

Is your argument seriously that it’s unfair that women aren’t overworked in India

Re: Apple and Foxconn win permission for 12-hour shifts for women in India

#155

I don't get this. Why push your work force like this? It's clearly very bad for the workers. And also for the factory, surely having 3 shifts is more efficient because your workers are not as fatigued so will work faster with fewer mistakes?

Simple, because it is cheaper for companies. Less logistics to take care of. As for worker welfare they wouldn't give two hoots, if they are fatigued and produce defective parts they can be fired and replaced.

Re: Apple and Foxconn win permission for 12-hour shifts for women in India

#156

Earlier quoted context omitted.

iPhones are not worth that answer. Nor is any other electronic. I wish this was escapable somehow, but my employer literally requires and pays for this equipment. To abstain from employment would be crazy – it wouldn't send a message to Apple. What the hell can someone do?

Corporate legal requirement to maximize shareholder value makes their behavior gas like, they’ll expand to fill all possible space and permeate any advantageous cracks. It’s counter productive and contrary to reality to pick on any one company for behaving as they’re legally obligated to do. The issue isn’t apple, the issue is governments that allow behavior we can’t accept by corporations. The way to prevent a gas f…

have you considered that both state and capital are the problem?

Re: Apple and Foxconn win permission for 12-hour shifts for women in India

#157

I read TFA and didn't notice an answer to my question below. Do men already have this permission? If so, I don't see why women shouldn't.

Shouldn't be too hard with a good reason. Ever noticed how men and women aren't exactly the same?

They aren't exactly the same. They are very different. I am far from a copypasta liberal politics idiot. A quick look at my comment history would have indicated this quite clearly to you.

Please explain to me why women shouldn't be allowed to work 12 hour days? I eagerly await your response.

Re: Apple and Foxconn win permission for 12-hour shifts for women in India

#158

I try not to judge these jobs by first world standards. What I don't understand is why a company can use $2 an hour labor and then sell a product for $1K. If I ran the US, I would put heavy tariffs on goods that companies try to outsource for cheap labor. This would encourage them to use technology and robotics to produce domestically.

the state works with capital, not against it.

Re: Apple and Foxconn win permission for 12-hour shifts for women in India

#159
> The law makes Karnataka one of the most flexible places to work in India

This is quite a take. The flexibility seems here is meant to be in favour of employers, not employees who are in a situation to work 12-hour shifts. In that case, the word exploitable would be more appropriate.

> be very efficient in terms of increasing productivity

If the increasing length of a shift is seen as productivity improvement, I wonder what the next step is going to be for them. Stagnating wages in an inflationary environment seems like a good candidate.

Re: Apple and Foxconn win permission for 12-hour shifts for women in India

#160

"Yayy women can finally be away from darned prison that we call home for 12 hours a day and even at night to do some bullshit job to help some idiot get a little richer yasss let's celebrate wohoo"

I take back my other comment. I don't eagerly await any responses from you. Your comments are childish.

Get off HN and go enjoy your 20s. If by chance you are older than that, grow up.

No one is forcing anyone to work 12 hour days. It's about allowing it should a woman choose to accept the position.

I get your angle now. Trad nonsense.

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