Apple came out with its 13th annual Supplier Responsibility Progress Report, giving an inside glimpse at some of the biggest issues it’s been battling.
The 66-page report is stuffed with interesting little facts, like how many gallons of water suppliers have saved and the amount of reduced greenhouse gas emissions. Apple admits it still has a lot of work to do, but the progress the company has made is pretty impressive. One of the biggest areas Apple emphasizes in its report is the people that work in the supply chain and the educational opportunities Apple is giving them.
“In everything we do, people come first,” said Apple COO Jeff Williams in the report. “This year, we’re proud to give more people an opportunity to advance their education. Working alongside our suppliers, we’re challenging ourselves to find new ways to keep our planet healthy for future generations. Our goal has always been not just to drive progress in our supply chain, but to drive meaningful change across the industry.”
You can comb through the entire report yourself. But here are the highlights we’ve spotted:
- All final assembly sites for iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, AirPods and HomePod are now certified Zero Waste to Landfill.
- Apple’s clean water program expanded to 116 suppliers, resulting in 7.6 billion gallons of water saved in 2018.
- Greenhouse gas emissions were reduced by more than 466,000 annualized metric tons — the equivalent of taking 100,000 cars off the road for one year.
- 1 million metric tons of waste were diverted from landfills to date.
- 100% of final assembly sites adopted safer, greener cleaners in their manufacturing processes.
- 12 Apple supplier facilities received the Chinese Government’s Green Factory designation, bringing the total number of Apple supplier facilities awarded this designation to 16
- 30 suppliers have made commitments to 100 percent renewable energy for Apple production
- In 2018, five 3TG and two cobalt smelters and refiners were removed from Apple’s supply chain for not meeting Apple’s supplier code of conduct.
- The majority of Labor and Human Rights violations found in Apple’s assessments were related to working hours violations and improper provision of wages and benefits.
- One case of underage labor was discovered. The individual was 15 years and 10 months old, and obtained a job through use of false identification
- Since 2008, over 3.6 million supplier employees have participated in education and skill-building programs.
- In 2018, over 1500 supplier employees earned a college degree through the Supplier Employee Education and Development (SEED) Program
- 744 supplier employees earned a certificate in assembly line robotics in 2018.
- As of 2018, over 250,000 supplier employees have participated in health training.
