Dear Friends,

It is February and we hit 50 degrees yesterday amidst rain, rainbows and a little sleet. The plow guys are busy spreading sand for the icy roads but there hasn’t been much snow to push around. Meanwhile, I am dreaming of spring…

After Apple’s spectacular results last week, there was a lot of bad press regarding the working conditions in the factories that make Apple products in China. I received several letters from customers and friends asking my opinion on the piece in the New York Times. While I feel that the article was sensationalist and had many inaccuracies, the concern expressed by many over working conditions is legitimate.

I also feel, as Apple does, that they have some of the most stringent requirements for their vendors of any electronics manufacturer in the world. It is sad to see them held to a different standard; however, I guess when you are the most valuable company and brand in the world, it comes with the territory. The bottom line for me is that I feel that Apple (with Tim Cook as CEO) is going to continue to work hard to improve working conditions wherever Apple products are made because any other action is, well, stupid, and Apple just ain’t stupid.

I have been to China many times and visited many factories. I can assure you that the conditions at the enormous Foxconn factory/cities are better than many factories that I have visited. Keep in mind that the our culture and the Chinese culture are very different. It was not that many years ago in the USA that we had a similar manufacturing culture. We were the manufacturer to the world and had large factories—many with employee housing and employee stores—and employees who came from the country to the city for work so that they could send money home to their families. As our free market economy grew, the manufacturing center started to move, too—first to Japan and Korea and ultimately to China, which is truly the manufacturing center of the world now.

Yes, employees are mostly young men and women, most of whom live in the big dormitories next to the plant. Most come from the country and work to send money home and then go on to other careers or education. It is interesting to note that this week Foxconn was hiring and eager workers lined up around the block for an opportunity for a job.

Apple’s standards for its suppliers are the rules by which Apple buys their products, but make no mistake: Foxconn is an independent manufacturer and while Apple has huge influence, they do not control that business. Apple is making Foxconn change. Working conditions now are far better than they were before Apple was involved. Nothing changes overnight and we should be proud of Apple’s positive influence in Chinese labor. The sensationalist notion of workers forced to do Apple’s bidding for slave wages is not an accurate picture. Can conditions be better? Of course. Can wages increase? Of course. Will the manufacturing center of the world move again? Of course. You need look no further than Foxconn’s plans to build factories in Brazil.

China has a huge labor force and manufacturing has a bright future in China, but so does improved working conditions and the rise of a middle class that will demand higher wages and benefits. We already see a huge explosion of entrepreneurial zeal in China as young men and women strike out on their own to form companies and embrace a free market economy.

Our own representative in China, Simon Liao, is one of those young Chinese entrepreneurs and I have seen him move from being a sales person at a small company to starting his own business which now includes manufacture sourcing and design. It is a remarkable journey and no one is more concerned about working conditions than the Chinese themselves. I am proud to have Simon as our partner and for him to make sure that the factories we use for our own production have humane working conditions. I am very bullish on the Chinese economy and very confident that Apple will continue to be the leader in change in China.