Samsung Electronics has announced it is suspending supplies from a Chinese supplier pending an investigation, following accusations the supplier has been using child labour.
The revelation comes after the tech giant concluded an audit on child labour practices in March, along with third party inspections of its supply chain in June and August 2013, with the company claiming no examples of child labour were found.
The company has previously said 90% of its component supplies come from companies affiliated with the Samsung Group, allowing it greater oversight of its suppliers.
Despite the audits, a group called China Labor Watch has accused a Samsung supplier, Shinyang Electronics of Dongguan in China, of hiring minors to work for up to 11 hours per day without overtime.
Following the accusations, Samsung issued a statement saying it has since found “evidences of illegal hiring process that took place on June 29” and has asked Chinese authorities to investigate.
“If the investigations conclude that the supplier indeed hired children illegally, Samsung will permanently halt business with the supplier in accordance with its zero tolerance policy on child labor,” said Samsung.
Andrew Sadauskas is a former journalist at SmartCompany and a former editor of TechCompany.
