APPLE’s investigation into working conditions at the Chinese plants where the iPod music player is made has confirmed that employees were often working more than 60 hours a week.
Apple said the hours were excessive, and has asked its manufacturing partner to impose a strict limit in future. Its investigators, who spoke to more than 100 employees at the huge Foxconn facility, found that the weekly limit was exceeded 35% of the time.
The company also found instances were employees were punished by being forced to stand to attention. Apple has insisted that such harsh treatment is never repeated.
Apple was stung into action after a report in a British newspaper accused it of producing iPods from a factory staffed by poorly paid and badly treated workers.
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BP improves Prudhoe oil output
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BP said on Friday that production from the western side of its Prudhoe Bay field in Alaska had risen to 220,000 barrels a day, slightly higher than it forecast last week. BP ran into problems with the field when it discovered corrosion in pipelines. However, it said later it had found a way to keep pumping oil from one half of the field, which supplies 8% of America’s needs.
Private space transport gets a boost
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NASA, the American space agency, on Friday chose two start-up rocket companies to undertake demonstration missions that could lead to commercial services to the International Space Station. It awarded $500m in seed funding to Space Exploration Technologies of California and Rocketplane-Kistler of Oklahoma. Nasa wants private companies to take over transport services to the space station after the ageing shuttle fleet is retired in 2010.
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UK airline buys Boeing Dreamliner
A BRITISH holiday airline is to buy almost $1 billion worth of Boeing’s newest plane, the 787 Dreamliner. Monarch Airlines, which is based at Luton airport, has ordered six of the new aircraft and has taken options on another four. The six would be worth $910m at Boeing’s list prices, although these are normally discounted in most aircraft deals. Monarch said it planned to use the new mid-sized jet, which seats up to 250 people, to open up new routes to the Americas, Asia and Africa.
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China restaurant firm to float on AIM
A COMPANY that operates a chain of luxury restaurants in China is preparing to float on the Alternative Investment Market. Prince Catering and Management, which runs 14 restaurants as well as an upmarket hotel and spa, has hired the stockbroker WH Ireland to advise on the float. It plans to raise £625,000. Although the group’s operations are in China, it is registered in the British Virgin Islands.
Delphi moves closer to rescue deal
HOPES for a rescue deal at Delphi, the global car-parts maker whose American operations are in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, rose on Friday after it emerged that a court hearing to cancel its employment contracts had been called off. Rick Wagoner, chief executive of General Motors, Delphi’s biggest customer and former owner, said the move was “a good sign” and that it indicated progress was being made in restructuring talks between GM, Delphi and its unions.