A report on Friday says that Apple lobbied Congress through Fierce Government Relations on the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (via The Information).
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act
It’s unknown if Apple lobbied for or against the bill, but it’s aimed at U.S. tech companies to make sure their supply chains don’t involve companies using Uyghur slave labor, especially from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.
Apple has previously been criticized for working conditions within its supply chain. More recently, activists have urged Apple, other U.S. companies to cut their ties to suppliers that allegedly use forced labor from the Uighurs, a Muslim minority in China. The Chinese government has been accused of forcing Uighurs to work under oppressive working conditions and other human rights violations.
In March a report from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute found that forced Uyghur labor was found in Apple’s supply chain, although the company’s internal review found no evidence of this.
This is hard because of the length of the chain. Apple contracts with Foxconn who gets assemblies from x, Y, and Z. They get parts from companies A through L. Those companies get materials from Companies M though T who import them from independent contractors in countries U, V, and W some of whom use forced labour. It’s harder than hell to trace.