“Suppliers are required to operate in accordance with our Code and in full compliance with all applicable laws and regulations. Apple is committed to the highest standards of social and environmental responsibility, ethical conduct, and human rights” pg. 4
“Suppliers are also required to apply our requirements to their sub-contractors, next-tier suppliers and third party recruitment agencies, through all levels of the supply chain. If a supplier is unwilling or unable to meet our requirements, the supplier risks removal from Apple’s supply chain” pg. 4
“Human trafficking and the use of involuntary labor are strictly prohibited in Apple’s supply chain and our own business operations” pg 2
“Apple has a zero tolerance policy for supplier employees paying fees for employment at any of our suppliers, even if those fees fall within the legal limits of the supplier’s operating country” pg. 9
“Apple maintains a robust governance structure and internal management system to enforce compliance with our policies to prevent human trafficking and the use of involuntary labor, and to implement supply chain human rights due diligence programs.” pg 3
“The Standards include broad coverage of human rights topics, including anti-discrimination and abuse, prevention of underage labor, juvenile and student worker protections, working hours management, wages, benefits, and contracts, freedom of association and collective bargaining, and the responsible sourcing of materials”pg.2
Core Violations are the most serious level of violation of our Code. These include cases of
underage or involuntary labor, human trafficking, document falsification, or intimidation of, or
retaliation against, workers for participating in assessments.10
Human trafficking and the use of involuntary labor are strictly prohibited in Apple’s supply chain
and our own business operations. This prohibition is explicitly stipulated in Apple’s Anti-Human
Trafficking Policy, the Apple Supplier Code of Conduct (“Code”) and the related Apple Supplier
Responsibility Standards (“Standards”). Our strict Code requires suppliers to uphold the rights
of the millions of people touched by our supply chain globally. 2
In addition, our Standards include detailed sections
covering anti-modern slavery related requirements, including: prevention of involuntary labor,
third party employment agencies, and foreign contract worker protections (collectively, the
“Prevention of Modern Slavery Standards”). 4
If an Apple supplier uses foreign contract workers, a specialized labor and human rights
assessment is conducted in the employees’ native language. If debt-bonded labor is found, we
require suppliers to provide a direct remedy, where suppliers repay their employees for any
recruitment fees paid. We then verify that payments were made in full and on time through an
independent auditor.6
Through the platform, suppliers are able to collaborate
with us to track assessment results, develop Corrective Action Plans for assessment findings,
reference best-practice resources, and monitor the progress of these improvements.
SupplierCare extends capability-building by providing on-demand educational content to
increase understanding of our Code and best practices to maintain compliance with our
Standards, including foreign worker protections and the responsible sourcing of minerals. In
2019, we engaged over 950 suppliers with digital training content. 11