Apple CEO Tim Cook e-mails employees about 'dramatic improvements' in supplier hirings
Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook sent out an e-mail to his company's employees on Friday, announcing the release of the latest supplier responsibility support and reiterating his commitment to fair labor practices.
The full 2012 Supplier Responsibility Progress Report includes data from 229 separate audits of Apple's overseas suppliers. Cook said to employees that the supplier responsibility program has resulted in "dramatic improvements in hiring practices" with Apple's suppliers.
"To prevent the use of underage labor, our team interviews workers, checks employment records and audits the age verification systems employers use," he wrote. "These efforts have been very successful and, as a result, cases of underage labor were down sharply from last year."
Cook's letter to employees also comes as Apple is now officially a participating member of the Fair Labor Association, which the CEO also acknowledged in his e-mail. The FLA's announcement on Friday makes Apple the first technology company admitted into the association.
"The FLA is a leading nonprofit organization dedicated to improving conditions for workers around the world, and we are the first technology company they've approved for membership," Cook wrote. "The FLA's auditing team will have direct access to our supply chain and they will report their findings independently on their website."

The full e-mail sent by Cook to employees on Wednesday was first published by Mac Generation. The letter is included in its entirety below:
Comments
Hmm, I see...
Seems like AAPL's P/E multiple will be down after the recent actions. It's probably worth it in the long run, but Wall-Street won't like AAPL turning less focused on pure profit and more on moral image.
This is the same Wall Street that is responsible for the financial & economic crisis going on today, was bailed out by the Feds to the tune of trillions of dollars, & expects taxpayers to pay the bill. Ask me again why I should give a shit what Wall Street thinks?
To prevent underage labor and educate employees are big deal, and there is not a lot of company which cares these.
Rumours that a special board meeting is being held at Samsung to find out how to join the FLA
lol!!!!!!!
This is the same Wall Street that is responsible for the financial & economic crisis going on today, was bailed out by the Feds to the tune of trillions of dollars, & expects taxpayers to pay the bill. Ask me again why I should give a shit what Wall Street thinks?
Well, you obviously shouldn't. The investors who own Apple stock care a great deal though, and are going to be pissed that their investment will become worth less that it should be because Apple's doing the right thing and not being purely focused on profit.
It's not a pretty image for a company with $80 billion in the bank and subcontracted labor with n-Hexane damaged lungs, mangled and deformed hands and no workers' compensation.
This American Life #434 Mr. Daisey goes to Apple
Rumours that a special board meeting is being held at Samsung to find out how to join the FLA
This is probably true...
Well, you obviously shouldn't. The investors who own Apple stock care a great deal though, and are going to be pissed that their investment will become worth less that it should be because Apple's doing the right thing and not being purely focused on profit.
How about being profitable AND being morally responsible?
We need to stop accepting the nonsense from people who focus on profit to the point that they are ok with committing human rights violations.
Well, you obviously shouldn't. The investors who own Apple stock care a great deal though, and are going to be pissed that their investment will become worth less that it should be because Apple's doing the right thing and not being purely focused on profit.
I've actually invested a great deal in shares of AAPL and personally, I'm very glad to see Apple taking a stance of integrity.
In my mind this is just another area where Apple is taking a leadership position and one where I hope other companies will continue to copy them!
Well, you obviously shouldn't. The investors who own Apple stock care a great deal though, and are going to be pissed that their investment will become worth less that it should be because Apple's doing the right thing and not being purely focused on profit.
Speculation and conjecture sure are fun eh? Nobody knows how these new practices are going to affect Apple's bottom line.
FUD.
Rumours that a special board meeting is being held at Samsung to find out how to join the FLA
I am guessing they'll squeeze the item into the agenda of the board meeting about to convene on their new and innovative power cables.
I've actually invested a great deal in shares of AAPL and personally, I'm very glad to see Apple taking a stance of integrity.
In my mind this is just another area where Apple is taking a leadership position and one where I hope other companies will continue to copy them!
Hear! Hear!
Not only as an $ investor, but as a time investor -- a great part of my personal life, business life and my grandkids future is invested in Apple.
This makes me very proud to be a small part of "the world according to Apple"... very proud, indeed!
Further, I especially like the succinct, no-nonsense nature of this communication...
I look forward to a great future for Apple, their management, their employees, their supply and distribution chains, and to their end users.
Keep the Team/Tim emails coming...
It's just not enough to define good as reducing the amount of harm we do. Growth is far more than the simple absence of decrepitude. "First, do no harm" is a fine place to start, but stopping there is a terrible mistake.
This is of course a good thing. But I can't help but note that the most valuable corporation on earth is reduced to crowing about having reduced the number of children it exploits.
It's just not enough to define good as reducing the amount of harm we do. Growth is far more than the simple absence of decrepitude. "First, do no harm" is a fine place to start, but stopping there is a terrible mistake.
The difference is that you have companies like Google claiming that they are not evil - all the while they're stealing and selling your private information and stealing every piece of intellectual property they can get their hands on.
Apple, OTOH, has an incredible reputation for taking care of their employees. They appear to be the only major tech firm who actually audits suppliers in China. They have an incredible environmental record in terms of using materials of low toxicity. But since they're not trumpeting "don't be evil", people are all over them.
This is an example of a CEO shaking in fear because social media (including radio programs like This American Life) is pressing the company to face the music, or else lose control of a valuable brand image.
That may be partially true, but if you scroll down a list of other electronics companies that use Foxconn for production, which of the others on the list have gone to the lengths that Apple has to try to rectify the situation? Granted, going public with it makes it look as if Apple is 'crowing' about it, but Apple has a pretty decent track record of doing things because they are good for the environment, and this adds doing things because they are good for people to the list.
It sounds as if Apple has had suppliers change their practices in the past, and are expecting them to play by even more stringent rules in the future. Good on Apple!
Seems like AAPL's P/E multiple will be down after the recent actions. It's probably worth it in the long run, but Wall-Street won't like AAPL turning less focused on pure profit and more on moral image.
Apple is in it for the long run. I wouldn't invest in a company that uses slash and burn tactics to make a quick buck. I suppose much of Wall Street follows Tea Party mentality these days though...