Chinese workers flee Covid lockdown at huge iPhone factory, potentially putting Apple in a bind as the holiday season draws near - Fortune

It’s unclear however galore cases of COVID person been identified astatine the facility, but with China’s strict zero-COVID policy, the workplace ordered a lockdown. Video shared online showed astir 10 radical jumping a obstruction extracurricular the plant. Officials, connected Sunday, said the institution would not stop workers from leaving.

While determination person been immoderate reports of arsenic galore arsenic 20,000 COVID cases astatine the plant, Foxconn has denied those, reports CNBC.

Those who person tested affirmative volition beryllium transported to respective days of mandatory isolation, Bloomberg reports.

Foxconn is Apple’s largest assembly mill for the iPhone—and the lockdown comes arsenic the vacation season, typically 1 of the hottest selling periods of the year, approaches. Officials, though, accidental they expect the wide interaction to beryllium limited, arsenic the institution is shifting accumulation to different sites.

Last week, Apple said request for the caller iPhone 14 Pro models was peculiarly strong, but supplies were constrained.

The lockdown means hundreds of thousands of workers successful the Zhengzhou installation person been taxable to “closed loop operations,” meaning they’re lone capable to question from their dormitories and the accumulation lines. That has led immoderate workers to depart the tract oregon garbage to instrumentality to work.

On Saturday, cities surrounding Zhengzhou told Foxconn workers to study to section authorities earlier they headed home.

Apple has been moving to shift much of its production extracurricular of China arsenic a effect of the country’s policies. Earlier this year, a two-month lockdown successful Shanghai resulted successful proviso concatenation disruptions for the company.

This latest disruption is hitting businesses beyond Foxconn and Apple. On Monday, officials ordered Shanghai Disney Resort to close (following a multi-month shutdown earlier this year). Universal Beijing Resort was besides closed past week.