Neglect is a strong word implying lack of care or attention capable of exploding into a massive protest of furry and turmoil, exactly the scenario of a certain Foxconn plant near Chennai that halted the entire factory for a week. The reason for this massive enraged ball of fury is the lack of communication or response from the company to its workforce with nearly 150 being hospitalized due to diarrhoeal disease. In what first appeared to be small scale protest eventually resulted in a noticeably large commotion of people protesting on the Chennai-Bangalore highway, until the legal forces were sent to put off this flame of furry. Since the number of people affected grew up to 250 and their colleagues were enraged that they did not receive communication from the company even then.

While workers claim that they were not informed of the whereabouts of the ill workers or the precise number of people affected, a declaration from Tiruvallur District Collector Alby John shows that 256 workers were diagnosed with Acute Diarrhea on December 15, 2021. 159 of them were admitted to hospitals, while the others were treated as outpatients at various hospitals.

The workers were agitated since the Taiwanese company's management reportedly just assured them that individuals who had been ill were undergoing medical treatment and no more information. The protests picked up steam, with rumours of at least two employees' deaths circulating, causing concern. One rumour in fact resulted in the arrest of a YouTuber named Sattai Durai Murugan for claiming that women workers had fallen ill due to the poison in their food. His accusations sparked widespread outrage, since he claimed that some employees were in critical condition after eating the company's food. People started fainting, had diarrhea, and were vomiting at the Foxconn-owned Poonamalee IMA hostel, according to one lady worker TNM spoke with.

“One of the women looked like she was close to death. But the company simply didn’t want the information to come out, so they kept all the workers locked up in the hostel itself. The two women who work beside me at the factory did not come for their shifts for two days,” she alleged. She also alleged that the affected women were not even taken to the hospital immediately. “Nobody gave us answers at the factory, including the supervisor. It’s only after we sat in protest are they even trying to talk to us,” she added.

The protesters dispersed on Saturday evening, according to Kanchipuram Collector M Aarthi, after assurance from TM Anbarasan, Minister for Rural Industries and Small Industries and DMK MLA for Alandur, and an apology from Foxconn. TNM spoke with a worker who claimed that government authorities, including the minister, failed to provide them with adequate assurances.

“They just kept saying ‘we’ll take care of it’. They didn’t even care to listen to us properly,” says the worker.

She further stated that four women who allegedly suffered food poisoning are being treated in hospitals. “The food poisoning did happen. Some were mildly affected, some required treatment and some needed to be admitted in the hospital. Four workers are still admitted. Three are in Mehta hospital and one is in Kilpauk Medical Hospital,” she said.

However, the Collector told TNM that the minister promised the workers an investigation into the alleged food poisoning, as well as assurances from the company that it will restore infrastructure and living conditions in the hostels.

Number of People Affected still Unclear

Though the District Collector did issue a statement stating the number of people who had fallen ill, as well as those who had been hospitalized and discharged, the ambiguity throughout the day led to the large gathering. The actual number of women affected, as well as their whereabouts, remained unknown for the last two days, according to a member of Penn Thozhillar Sangam (Women Labourers' Union, a trade union for women workers).

The corporation sent nine of the workers to a hospital in an attempt to appease the protestors, promising that they would be able to verify the condition of those who were hospitalized. The union, on the other hand, had not heard from them.

“The workers did not call off the protest willingly, but the decision was due to overwhelming insistence of TM Anbarasan and government officials to disperse. The workers have told us that if they continue to be kept in the dark regarding their affected colleagues, they will re-start the protest,” the Penn Thozhillar Sangam member said.

 

Sujata Mody, President of Penn Thozhillar Sangam, told TNM that the women are young, and many of them are working for the first time. “They do not have family nearby. They are living in hostels run by the company, far from home and a support system. There are about 5,000-7,000 workers, all brought in by contractors or agents.”

Despite being dispersed, the workers are still enraged, according to Mody.

“District collector, police, the minister, and management of Foxconn - all of them arrived at the protest site with the focus on simply putting an end to the protest. Whether the families of the affected have been informed, how many in total were affected by the food poisoning, what the present situation is - none of it has been told to the protesters. They have just been told that Foxconn has apologised and how that is a good sign. To the workers, it feels like Foxconn has been given a clean chit by the government”.

Factory to Remain Shut for a Week

This happens to be the second incident of upheaval at Foxconn in a year, this time involving an Apple supplier factory in India. Thousands of contract workers at a Wistron Corp factory destroyed equipment and vehicles in December of last year. The protestors claimed non-payment of wages and caused $60 million in damages. The factory which manufactures smartphones for Apple and Xiaomi India will remain closed for a week.

"The decision to suspend operations at the factory for a week has been taken by the management. Employees that complained of food poisoning and other problems in recent times have been asked to register their problems with the state labour department”, says a police officer from the office of the Superintendent of Police in Kancheepuram.

Apple just began trial production of its flagship iPhone 13 at the factory. By February, the company expects to begin commercial manufacturing of the models in the country for both export and domestic markets. Contract manufacturers supplying American companies are increasingly looking to India, Mexico, and Vietnam as a way to minimize their reliance on China in the face of mounting Sino-US tensions.