Earlier today we reported that one of Apple’s suppliers based in China, Pegatron, has been accused of worker abuse. The allegations were leveled by China Labor Watch, a New York based non-profit. Its report indicates that the initial production of iPhone Lite, also known as the low cost iPhone, has already begun at Pegatron. The report has a section titled “A day in Pegatron,” in which a worker describers their activities at the Pegatron factory.
The worker’s account is of July 9th, when they had to “paste protective film on the iPhone’s plastic back cover to prevent it from being scratched on assembly lines.” If you’ve been following the barrage of rumors about the iPhone Lite, you’ll know that it is expected to have a plastic back cover. The worker has also been cited as saying that mass production of this device hasn’t begun yet, but they believe that it will be released in the market soon. The report says that apart from building iPhone 4, iPhone 4S and iPhone 5, Pegatron is also tasked with building “low-priced plastic iPhones” for Apple. Everything that’s mentioned in this particular section of this report lines up with all of the rumors we have been hearing about iPhone Lite. Apple is expected to announce it this September.