Apple retail chief Angela Ahrendts today accepted the Thomson Reuters Foundation's Stop Slavery Award on behalf of Apple at the Trust Conference, an annual human rights gathering.

Apple received the award for its efforts to stop forced labor in its supply chain. Apple has long banned suppliers from requiring workers to pay off debt or withholding passports.

angelaahrendtstrustconference


Ahrendts told attendees that Apple is teaming up with the UN's International Organization for Migration for an initiative that may eventually help victims of human trafficking to get jobs behind-the-scenes at Apple retail locations.

Apple will not know which individuals are being hired through the program, with participating people set to be hired by Apple suppliers rather than Apple directly to start with.


Apple will, however, monitor the initiative, and the company may eventually extend the program to allow human trafficking victims to be hired in Apple retail locations, according to the BBC.

"Though we have only just started, we see huge opportunity to be a beacon of hope for trafficking survivors integrating them into our retail team," Ms Ahrendts said in her acceptance speech.

"These efforts are just a part of a broader set of initiatives to eliminate modern slavery from every part of our company, in every part of the world."

Apple conducts ongoing audits of its supply chain partners and punishes those who are found to be defying the protections put in place for workers. Suppliers who repay fees are put on probation, and those that do not are banned.

More information on Apple's human rights efforts can be found on the company's Supplier Responsibility website.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Top Rated Comments

miniyou64 Avatar
90 months ago
Yet they have more than a billion slaves to their ecosystem and charging them more for it too.
I get your point but Im not quite sure that fits the definition of slavery
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
patent10021 Avatar
90 months ago
I thought it said Apple Wins Top Slavery award.

And I took it to mean their factory conditions were so bad they got that award as mockery.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ArtOfWarfare Avatar
90 months ago
I applaud Apple’s efforts and progress here and in other social/humanitarian efforts, but I wish they’d put more effort into actually making products worthy of the high price tags they put on them. Or if they only have minor improvements, maybe leave the price alone (or even lower them?)
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mr. Dee Avatar
90 months ago
Yet they have more than a billion slaves to their ecosystem and charging them more for it too.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Huntn Avatar
90 months ago
I get your point but Im not quite sure that fits the definition of slavery
Capitalist slaves. For Apple and most of the Capitalist world, why should we pay our own citizens a living wage, when we can have $.50 per hour for labor? And in the US, who argues for elimination of minimum wage standards? Unfettered Capitalism thrives, depends on slave wages for max profit.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
s2mikey Avatar
90 months ago
It's been well documented they use slave labor
Sure do - the shareholders demand it. Because evlevnty billion million in profit just doesnt cut it. They must generate Forty two quintillion billion. Hey - I buy some of their stuff and use it but Im fully aware that slave labor is being milked. This cannot be argued so dont try.

Apple isnt the only one doing it but for them to get an award pertaining to NOT doing this is somewhat hilarious. They could EASILY afford to make the stuff here in the USA and pay good wages/benefits but again, the miserable shareholders are never happy.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iOS 26 Feature

iOS 26.1 to iOS 26.4 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Wednesday October 1, 2025 1:26 pm PDT by
iOS 26 was released last month, but the software train never stops, and iOS 26.1 beta testing is already underway. So far, iOS 26.1 makes both Apple Intelligence and Live Translation on compatible AirPods available in additional languages, and it includes some other minor changes across Apple Music, Calendar, Photos, and Safari. More features and changes will follow in future versions,...
john ternus on stage

Gurman: Major Apple Leadership Shakeup Impending With John Ternus as Next CEO

Monday October 6, 2025 6:21 am PDT by
Apple is entering its most significant leadership transition in more than a decade as multiple senior executives prepare to depart and CEO Tim Cook begins to shape the company's next generation of leaders, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In the latest edition of his "Power On" newsletter, Gurman explained that Jeff Williams, who was viewed as Cook's potential successor for several...
iPhone 17 vs Air and Pros Feature

New iPhones See 'Stronger Than Expected' Demand With One Exception

Thursday October 2, 2025 7:26 am PDT by
Nearly two weeks after the iPhone 17 series launched, analysts at investment banking firm Morgan Stanley said demand for the devices has been "modestly stronger than we originally expected," based on a combination of extended shipping estimates on Apple's online store and information it gathered from Apple's supply chain. There has been strong early demand for the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro,...
iOS 26 Feature

iOS 26 Adds These 200 New Features and Changes to Your iPhone

Saturday October 4, 2025 8:19 am PDT by
Apple's website offers a list of nearly 200 new features and changes (PDF file) included in the software update, released last month. Apple also shared equivalent lists for iPadOS 26 and macOS Tahoe. iOS 26 is compatible with the iPhone 11 and newer. To install the update, open the Settings app on your iPhone, tap on General, and tap on Software Update. Below, we have highlighted eight ...
ios 26 1 slide to stop

Apple Fixes Alarms in iOS 26.1

Monday October 6, 2025 11:56 am PDT by
With the second beta of iOS 26.1, Apple updated the design of alarms set on the iPhone, making them harder to dismiss than before. Stopping an alarm in iOS 26.1 beta 2 requires a new Slide to Stop gesture rather than a simple tap. You can continue to tap to snooze an alarm, but if you want to turn it off entirely, you need to use a swipe. Transitioning from a tap to a slide gesture to...
ipad mini 7 feature blue

iPad Mini 8 on the Way: Expected Features and Release Timeline

Monday October 6, 2025 5:05 am PDT by
A new iPad mini is "absolutely" on the way, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. So what should we expect from the successor to the iPad mini 7 that Apple released a year ago? Processor and Performance Apple is working on a next-generation version of the iPad mini (codename J510/J511) that features the A19 Pro chip, according to information found in code that Apple mistakenly shared in...
macbook air prime day 2025

M5 MacBook Air: Release Date, Features, and Performance Predictions

Friday October 3, 2025 3:39 am PDT by
The MacBook Air is Apple's most popular laptop – a thin, fanless machine that wields quiet power thanks to the efficiency of Apple silicon. While the M4 model isn't exactly old, attention is already turning to its successor. Apple doesn't telegraph new product launches ahead of time, but we can draw a surprisingly clear picture of what to expect by looking at Apple's silicon roadmap,...
iCloud iPhone 17 Pro

Apple Highlights Five Perks for iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage

Monday October 6, 2025 6:29 am PDT by
After launching new iPhones last month, Apple is promoting iCloud+ with a prominent banner on its home page, in a bid to boost its services revenue. In addition to more storage, all iCloud+ plans include five perks for iPhone users. As a refresher, iCloud includes 5GB of storage for free. If you want extra storage, you need to subscribe to an iCloud+ plan. In the United States, prices range...