Over the past few weeks, there has been a strong wave of the coronavirus blowing through India. Since the beginning of this month, the coronavirus cases in India have increased significantly. In fact, for the past week, India has been recording no less than 2000 deaths daily. The situation is getting worse and Indians are now taking strong precautions. According to insiders report, the iPhone 12 production capacity at a Foxconn factory in India had dropped by more than 50%. This is basically due to workers leaving their jobs as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Foxconn’s factory in Tamil Nadu, southern India, produces iPhones exclusively for India. Tamil Nadu is one of the states hardest hit by the second wave of COVID-19 in India. Beginning Monday, Tamil Nadu has been in a state of complete lockdown. The city has closed public transportation, shops, and all sort of public activities in an attempt to curb the soaring number of infections.
Foxconn’s Tamil Nadu factory is a “no entry” zone
According to reports, over 100 Foxconn workers in Tamil Nadu have been infected with the coronavirus. To this end, the company has imposed a “no entry” ban on the factory in Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu. This “no entry” ban will be active until at least the end of the month. If the situation in Tamil Nadu does not change, the entry ban will continue.
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“From yesterday, employees are only allowed to leave, not to enter the factory,” said an internal anonymous source. “The factory only retains a small part of the output”.
The internal source also claims that the factory had to cut more than 50% of its regular output. However, the source did not specify the capacity of the factory. As of now, there is no information on the exact number of workers in the factory. Foxconn provides accommodation for employees, thus there is no need for employees to leave the environment.
In response, Foxconn confirmed that a small number of its employees tested positive for COVID-19. The company also claims that it is providing all the necessary support including medical assistance.
“Foxconn puts the health and safety of our employees first, which is why we have been working closely with Indian local governments and public health agencies to solve the challenges we and all companies face in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic crisis,” Foxconn said in a statement.
Foxconn declined to comment on factory output or specific staffing. With regards to this issue, Apple did not also comment.
