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    Samsung's own team will visit Chinese factory to investigate child labor claims

    Samsung's own team will visit Chinese factory to investigate child labor claims

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    Samsung has reacted swiftly to a report by China Labor Watch alleging the employment of underage workers at one of its suppliers' factories by promising to send its inspectors in for a special investigation.

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    Samsung logo (STOCK)

    Samsung has reacted swiftly to a report by China Labor Watch alleging the employment of underage workers at one of its suppliers' factories by promising to send its inspectors in for a special investigation. A team from Samsung HQ will be dispatched to Huizhou, China, tomorrow, where they'll seek to establish whether the supplier in question, HEG Electronics, was indeed employing underage workers as CLW has claimed. Two previous inspections of the facility this year have not shown any wrongdoing, says Samsung, and we're not sure that this particular one will be any more fruitful given the incentive for HEG to cover up such activities and this advance warning from the Korean giant.

    Still, sending in a team of Samsung's own representatives at least gives this audit the appearance of a higher standard than the previous ones, which have reportedly been done by third-party contractors from within China. The full statement from Samsung is below.

    "Samsung Electronics has conducted two separate on-site inspections on HEG's working conditions this year but found no irregularities on those occasions.

    A team of inspectors consisting of Samsung personnel from Korea headquarters will be dispatched to Huizhou, China on August 9, and it will immediately launch an investigation and take appropriate measures to correct any problems that may surface.

    Samsung Electronics is a company held to the highest standards of working conditions and we try to maintain that at our facilities and the facilities of partner companies around the world."