China iPhone factory staff fleeing Covid curbs will receive four times the bonus if they stay

Workers at the world's largest iPhone factory in central China are fleeing a Covid outbreak at the facility. In order to encourage the staff to stay and work, authorities have announced that the bonuses of those who stay will be quadrupled.

Employees who are part of a Foxconn unit that makes electronics including smartphones at the site will now receive a bonus of 400 yuan ($55) a day for November, as opposed to the earlier rate of 100 yuan, Foxconn's Zhengzhou plant said on its official WeChat account.

Additional bonuses will be given those who attend work for 15 days or longer in November, reaching 15,000 yuan if they record full attendance this month.

Also Read |China: Workers flee COVID-hit iPhone plant, country's biggest, due to curbs

Foxconn produces 70 per cent of iPhone shipments globally and makes most of the phones at the Zhengzhou plant where about 200,000 people are employed by the company.

Stringent Covid curbs forced several workers to flee the facility, complaining about the way they were being treated. The Zhengzhou has been under lockdown since mid-October. The company said that it is testing employees daily and keeping the infected away from others.

But Chinese social media has been flooded with complaints from these workers, who alleged poor working conditions and inadequate virus protection for employees who are not infected.

The plant has reported capacity constraints in isolating those infected, a Foxconn manager told a unit of financial news outlet Yicai. Rumours that the virus will cause severe illness have also added to the panic, the manager said.

Foxconn employees could be seen fleeing the company's campus in videos shared on social media and returning to their hometowns on foot due to the Covid travel restrictions.

"Initially there wasn't enough to eat or drink," a source told Reuters. The shortage triggered "a sense of anxiety" and supplies were shipped in.

Workers who have fled have been asked to register with authorities upon returning home and complete several days of quarantine upon arrival.

(With inputs from agencies)