Gaming and Ethics

[Marked 197]

If you're on this forum then you probably like video games. Do the ethics of companies who develop your gaming consoles affect you at all? Be it an acknowledgement of wrongdoing by the company to affecting your purchasing decisions.

 

How about this headline

 

Xbox workers threaten mass suicide

 

Approximately 300 Foxconn employees who work on the Xbox 360 manufacturing line in Wuhan, China, threatened to jump from the building's roof following a rescinded pay deal earlier this month.

 

WantChina Times reported that 14 Foxconn employees committed suicide in 2010. Employees frequently complained of long working hours and discrimination.

 

And do you buy this:

"That is something we remain committed to - the safe and ethical treatment of people who build our products. That's a core value of our company."

 

Source: http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/6240515/Xbox-workers-threaten-mass-suicide

[rgangsta 43]

Oh no! I hope SONY isn't doing this. They're my favorite gaming company.

But this is how the world works. Someone has to get screwed while someone else is living the good life. I'm just thinking of this logically. But emotionally, this is wrong. If your workers commit suicide, that tells you that you're doing something wrong. Foxconn better get their act together.

[Knuckles 1]

Foxconn not only manufactures consoles for games, but pretty much a large percentage of consumer electronics available on shelf, including Apple iDevices, laptop computers from most major OEMs, smartphones, HDTVs, and computer components in a large number of PCs made today like Seagate Hard Drives. If you want to boycott any product manufactured by Foxconn it'll be difficult to do, without becoming Amish.

 

Someone committed suicide over an incident with an iPad prototype unit (or iPhone if I am mistaken), so it's not just games consoles.

 

@rgangsta Sony also outsources their products to the same company they manufacture Nintendo and MS products. PS3s, PS2s, PSPs, and supposedly the PSV are also being manufactured by Foxconn. Many companies don't do the manufacturing anymore, so they rely on outsourcing to third parties in off-shore locations like China or Mexico. This is done to reduce labor costs, and unfortunately craftsmanship and build quality could've been better if the companies were to do the manufacturing themselves, but that is open for debate.

Edited January 11, 2012 by Knuckles

[rgangsta 43]

...Seagate Hard Drives...

 

@rgangsta Sony also outsources their products to the same company they manufacture Nintendo and MS products. PS3s, PS2s, PSPs, and supposedly the PSV are also being manufactured by Foxconn. Many companies don't do the manufacturing anymore, so they rely on outsourcing to third parties in off-shore locations like China or Mexico. This is done to reduce labor costs, and unfortunately craftsmanship and build quality could've been better if the companies were to do the manufacturing themselves, but that is open for debate.

Son of a gun! I got a Seagate hard drive for Christmas. >.<

Oh well. Like I said, someone has to get screwed for us to live the good life.

"It's a dirty job but someone's gotta do it." ;)

[madanchi 18]

the entire human society in general is a filthy disgusting mess, and it's only going to get worse.

 

that's probably the only pesimistic belief I have in my life

Edited January 11, 2012 by madanchi

[Marked 197]

"It's a dirty job but someone's gotta do it."

So... you have no problem that the corporation uses slave labor? I mean they get paid, and I don't know all the specific details, but if 14 of your workers jump off your building and hundreds more are threatening as a bargain technique, i think its safe to infer its slave labor.

 

And when i say 'issue', i mean anything as little as just thinking 'well that's bad'. Its horribly optimistic to think it affects anyone purchasing decisions, I just want to know if anyone gives a damn..

 

the entire human society in general is a filthy disgusting mess, and it's only going to get worse.

Lol yeah perhaps your right, but lets 'try' to pretend thats not an excuse

[madanchi 18]

I feel really bad for buying stuff that's probably or has been manufactured in those or similar conditions. It's bad because we need to buy certain items to keep on living, like laptops, computer hardware, stationary, phones etc and most of them have probably been built in similar conditions without us even knowing.

 

no matter how bad something is, who's going to do something about it? There's a lot of people who would like to but can't for whatever reason and the worlds been like that for a long time

Edited January 11, 2012 by madanchi

[RageMage 5]

Honestly, I really don't see how this could affect your average consumer anyways, me personally no it doesn't affect my purchasing choices I might not agree with the way things are done but in reality anyone who can seriously threaten suicide has other issues that are a lot deeper than problems with their job.

To tell the truth I think they should be counting their lucky stars that they have a job at all, I've been unemployeed for way to long and everytime I get a job they only hire me long enough to train some half wit kid just because they think in the long run it will lead to them making an extra profit.

 

Companies have low ethics in general it's just the way it is, they treat their employees like crap and then just to make themselves look "better' they donate a portion of their profits to charities, all because it can be noted as a tax write off at least for American companies. This is just a matter of checks and balances to keep the poor, poor and make the rich richer. Other than that I don't have much more to say on the matter.

[Marked 197]

in reality anyone who can seriously threaten suicide has other issues that are a lot deeper than problems with their job.

To tell the truth I think they should be counting their lucky stars that they have a job at all, I've been unemployeed for way to long and everytime I get a job they only hire me long enough to train some half wit kid just because they think in the long run it will lead to them making an extra profit.

The threaten to commit suicide coz they're practically slaves? Sure they're getting paid, but it could be a few cents an hour. The suicide is because they're slaves, not coz they have 'deep issues'.

[Polraudio 122]

I dont think the money they are getting paid is near enough. But they do have a choice to quit and find anoter job instead of killing them selfs.

 

They also have better options like a strike or threatening to burn the place down.

 

EDIT: its still not right for the company to exploit this.

[Marked 197]

Never mind..

[Knuckles 1]

To tell the truth I think they should be counting their lucky stars that they have a job at all, I've been unemployeed for way to long and everytime I get a job they only hire me long enough to train some half wit kid just because they think in the long run it will lead to them making an extra profit.

 

Not to be a dick but I am confident most Foxconn employees would consider your worst struggles in the workforce a dream compared to their best ever moments where they live, or that you just are/were spoiled. You just compared yourself to them. Perhaps you think you're living, or you have once lived, in a less fortunate situation yourself, you should move to PRC and find work and see if you can hold an hour of working there, let alone actually living at the factory. Once you've done that come back here to share your experience.

 

I do agree though, companies have very low ethnics and are hard on their employees. At the Foxconn factories in PRC the personnel would administer physical beatings on their employees. The worst case scenario in America is, you get fired. Find a new job. Big fucking deal.

 

I've been jobless at one point, been living below poverty levels even, but this is America I am talking about. No food? Go to food banks. Homeless? We have more housing resources in this country than most other parts of the globe, especially PRC if I am not mistaken. No job? Plenty of gross fast food chains in America would gladly hire you to flip freshly ground rat intestine burgers to serve 99 billion at a minimal wage of a fortune compared to the money Foxconn employees get paid. Foxconn employees would love being poor here in America.

Edited January 12, 2012 by Knuckles

[RageMage 5]

Not to be a dick but I am confident most Foxconn employees would consider your worst struggles in the workforce a dream compared to their best ever moments where they live, or that you just are/were spoiled. You just compared yourself to them. Perhaps you think you're living, or you have once lived, in a less fortunate situation yourself, you should move to PRC and find work and see if you can hold an hour of working there, let alone actually living at the factory. Once you've done that come back here to share your experience.

 

I never compared myself to them if it seemed as though I was then I'm sorry that I worded it that way, They really should be glad that they have work and get paid anything sure it's not enough but atleast they are making something even if it is only a few cents it's more than a lot of people are making and the same time substantially less than others are making. Scratch this they don't make enough period even what they make wouldn't be enough to cover living expenses. Excuse me.

 

I might not know exactly how things are for them I don't live there or work with them so I wouldn't, I only really know what my situation is like, sure I'm "better off" being unemployed here or would be if I took advantage of food banks and such, I was raised to work for what I get.

Yes things in America are so much better but just because one part of America is in such a good shape that you can find another job and no big deal doesn't mean it's like that in all other parts of the US.

 

I'm not saying that my situation is the same as theirs my big point was that anyone who can seriously threaten suicide has deep personal issues, what ever pushes them over the edge is a totally different story be it working conditions or anything else.

The threaten to commit suicide coz they're practically slaves? Sure they're getting paid, but it could be a few cents an hour. The suicide is because they're slaves, not coz they have 'deep issues'.

A job is never worth killing yourself over and there are other options that they could resort to instead.

 

I don't like the way things are but just because we're here discussing it doesn't mean it's going to change.

Edited January 12, 2012 by RageMage

[rgangsta 43]

So... you have no problem that the corporation uses slave labor? I mean they get paid, and I don't know all the specific details, but if 14 of your workers jump off your building and hundreds more are threatening as a bargain technique, i think its safe to infer its slave labor.

 

And when i say 'issue', i mean anything as little as just thinking 'well that's bad'. Its horribly optimistic to think it affects anyone purchasing decisions, I just want to know if anyone gives a damn..

 

 

Lol yeah perhaps your right, but lets 'try' to pretend thats not an excuse

You have a point and I do care but I'll answer your post with this quote:

 

 

I feel really bad for buying stuff that's probably or has been manufactured in those or similar conditions. It's bad because we need to buy certain items to keep on living, like laptops, computer hardware, stationary, phones etc and most of them have probably been built in similar conditions without us even knowing.

 

no matter how bad something is, who's going to do something about it? There's a lot of people who would like to but can't for whatever reason and the worlds been like that for a long time

 

This is precisely how I feel. Not because I'm a jerk or anything. Trust me, I'm real sensitive. I'm just thinking of this logically. I couldn't throw away my hardware because I found this out. And there's nothing I can do besides starting petitions. People have been against slave labor for years and it's always going to stay that way. It's sad really.