[Emperor Smeat]

Chinese electronic manufacture Foxconn is in big trouble after it was discovered they've been using unpaid workers to help assemble PS4 consoles. Making things worse was these unpaid workers ended up being engineering student interns who were threatened with the inability to graduate as punishment by Foxconn. Some of the students claimed they also had to work overtime and midnight shifts as part of Foxconn's demands.

Per GamesInAisa, the reports state that the students are being forced to work at Foxconn’s Yantai plant under the guise of an ‘internship’. “Students have been told if they refuse to participate, they lose six course credits, which effectively means they will not be able to graduate,” cites the report via MCV. “Students say that their working hours are exactly the same as regular workers – the only difference is that unlike the workers, the students aren’t being paid”. Sony told MCV that Foxconn has been found to be fully compliant with its own code of conduct. “The Sony Group established the ‘Sony Supplier Code of Conduct’ in June 2005 with the expectation of every supplier agreeing and adhering to the policies of the Sony Group in complying with all applicable laws, work ethics, labour conditions, and respect for human rights, environmental conservation and health and safety,” it said in a statement. “We understand Foxconn fully comprehend and comply with this ‘Sony Supplier Code of Conduct’.” But according to various reports, the students were assigned to jobs that had no relation to their fields of study, including assembling and packing PS4s. In a statement issued to Quartz, via CVG, the Chinese manufacturer acknowledged that the engineering students who were assigned to night shifts and overtime was done so in direct violation of the company’s policies.

http://www.vg247.com/2013/10/10/foxc...ll-compliance/

http://www.polygon.com/2013/10/10/48...anufacture-ps4