Out of all the megacorporations that dominate the world of international trade, and which regularly draw a mix of scorn and skepticism over their business practices even from the consumers that rely on them, Apple had long enjoyed a unique popularity.

Its sleek design, high quality and intuitive products, and the rebellious, troubled-genius image that its founder Steve Jobs continued to project even as he led the world’s largest publicly traded company created a powerful brand and an often intense loyalty. Even with mounting reports of troubling labor practices on the part of Apple suppliers in China, the company seemed adept at sidestepping the tarnish of sweatshop labor, perhaps because the clean, whirring production floors of the IT industry seem so different than cramped and chaotic garment industry factories.

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Download this file (231_j7ep0anp.pdf)231_j7ep0anp.pdf[Apple’s Agreement with the FLA signals Progress on Workers’ Rights ]172 kB