Samsung Suspends Business With Chinese Supplier Over Child Labour

Samsung has suspended business with one of its suppliers in China after it found ‘evidence’ of child labour at the plant.

The South Korean electronics giant had initiated a probe into the Dongguan Shinyang Electronics after the rights monitoring group China Labour Watch (CLW) reported the factory was employing children under the age of 16 as workers. "Following the investigation, Samsung decided to temporarily suspend business with the factory in question as it found evidence of suspected child labour at the work site," the company said. It added that if the case of child labour was proved, the suspension of business would become permanent.

The company emphasised that it maintains a ‘zero-tolerance’ policy on child labour and conducted frequent inspections of its suppliers to ensure its implementation. "It is unfortunate that the CLW allegation surfaced despite Samsung's efforts," it said.

CLW, the New York-based watchdog had also cited many other violations at the same factory, including unpaid overtime wages, excessive overtime and a lack of social insurance and training.