Apple supplier Foxconn is making efforts to recruit more workers for the world’s largest iPhone factory ahead of the launch of the latest model.
According to the BBC, Foxconn said new employees at its plant in Zhengzhou, China, would get bonuses of up to 3,000 yuan if they stay on the job for at least 90 days.
It said that workers who successfully refer a friend and family member would also qualify for an award.
The iPhone 15 was expected to be launched in September.
Foxconn employees who refer a recruit will now receive 500 yuan if the person stays at the company for a month, a post by the BBC on the popular Chinese messaging app WeChat said.
It marks the new move by the Taiwan-based manufacturer to improve benefits for its workers at the vast plant – iPhone City.
The company didn’t immediately respond to a BBC request for comment.
Hundreds of employees protested at the Zhengzhou plant over corona restrictions and claims of overdue pay the last year.
Videos shared online in October showed people jumping a fence outside the Foxconn factory after it was locked down owing to a coronavirus outbreak.
In November, Apple warned that shipments of the iPhone 14 would be delayed after Chinese officials locked down a district of Zhengzhou, where iPhone City is located.
The iPhone maker then recruited new employees with promises of higher bonuses.
One worker told the BBC that the contracts were changed, so they “couldn’t get the subsidy promised”, adding that they had been quarantined without food.
Foxconn said, “A technical error occurred during the onboarding process”, adding that the pay of recruits was “the same as agreed (in the) official recruitment posters”.
The Zhengzhou plant employs over 200,000 people, making iPhone devices, including the Apple iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max.
