Microsoft probes mass suicide threat at China plant

Microsoft is investigating reports that workers at a China plant making its Xbox 360 game consoles had threatened to commit mass suicide due to a pay dispute.

 

Tech site Neowin.net said Foxconn, the company making the consoles, admitted there was a worker protest at its Wuhan, China plant but added it had ended.

 

"Microsoft takes working conditions in the factories that manufacture its products very seriously, and we are currently investigating this issue. We have a stringent Vendor Code of Conduct that spells out our expectations, and we monitor working conditions closely on an ongoing basis and address issues as they emerge," Neowin.net quoted Microsoft as saying in a statement.

 

Also, Microsoft said it is "committed to the fair treatment and safety of workers employed by our vendors and to ensuring conformance with Microsoft policy."

 

In 2010, Neowin said a number of Foxconn employees in China committed suicide at work amid reports of poor working conditions and low pay at those plants.

 

The suicides reportedly prompted Foxconn to make Foxconn workers sign anti-suicide contracts in 2011. — TJD, GMA News