Silicon Sweatshops: An illness in Suzhou

A large number of workers at a plant in China that makes components for Apple products have become sick from handling a chemical used to clean the glass screens for products like the iPod and iPhone. The company doesn't have the necessary permits to use the chemical, n-hexane, but continues to do so to shave a few seconds off its production time. Apple, meanwhile, refuses to answer questions about the manufacturing of their products or exercise oversight as to how they are made. But labor-rights groups say Apple has tremendous power to change the situation because of its purchasing power. In a world with supply chains that extend thousands of miles long, the demand to bring a product to market quickly can overwhelm safety concerns and oversight. – YaleGlobal