Supplier Responsibility

Designed by Apple in California. Made by people everywhere.

Millions of people across more than 50 countries make our products possible. Respect for people — and the planet we all share — is our top priority. At Apple, we’re always learning and raising the bar. When challenges arise, we work tirelessly to create lasting change.

People come first.

In everything we do.

Labour and human rights at the foundation.

Creating the best products in the world means putting people first — always. We require our suppliers to uphold the highest standards of labour and human rights, and make respect for people the foundation of their business.

The Apple Human Rights Policy outlines how we treat everyone that our business reaches — including our employees, our customers and the people in our supply chain. The Apple Supplier Code of Conduct (our Code) is a rigorous set of requirements that Apple suppliers must meet in the areas of labour and human rights, health and safety, and environmental stewardship. For more than 15 years, we have partnered with our suppliers to drive the highest supply chain standards, aligning with the most stringent international frameworks, including the International Labour Organization Core Conventions and the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. We update our Code every year, raising the bar for our suppliers and challenging others in the industry to join us.

We verify that suppliers are meeting our standards through rigorous independent third-party assessments, completing over 800 related to our Code in fiscal year 2022. These onsite audits include a thorough review of every detail of a supplier’s operations, from workplace conditions to fair hiring practices and timely wage payments. Of the assessments in the 2022 reporting period, 214 were surprise visits where the supplier had no advance notice of the assessment team’s arrival. Apple employees are also on site every day at many of our suppliers’ manufacturing facilities, collaborating with them on every aspect of their work.

If violations of our Code are found, suppliers must fix the issues and take steps to prevent them from happening again, all under the supervision of Apple experts. Suppliers with Core Violations of our Code (the most serious level of violation) face probation and immediate consequences, including ineligibility for new business, a notification sent to their CEO, and the suspension of existing projects if required short-term actions are not taken. Any supplier that is unable or unwilling to meet our standards risks termination of its business with Apple. Since 2009 we have removed 25 manufacturing suppliers and 205 material processors from our supply chain for failure to uphold our Code.

Workplace rights from day one.

Our Code requires our suppliers to train their employees on their workplace rights before they begin work. This includes empowering them to speak up if their rights are not being respected. In 2021, we began developing a new digital training platform to make rights training in our supply chain even more effective. This engaging experience is delivered directly to workers’ mobile devices, and real-time feedback enables us to rapidly update the training to address areas of knowledge that need reinforcement.

Zero tolerance for forced labour.

Apple has zero tolerance for forced labour in any form. Our standards apply globally — regardless of a person's job, location or how they’re hired — and every supplier assessment we conduct looks for evidence of forced labour.

Our work to prevent forced labour begins even before people enter our supply chain. We require that recruitment processes be free and fair, which means prohibiting practices like charging fees to secure a job, even where it’s allowed by law. Our diligence extends throughout a person’s employment journey, by ensuring suppliers are meeting our standards for prevention of forced labour every time we engage.

Prevention of forced labour starts with education and strict standards. In 2022, we partnered with the United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM), the world’s leading experts on migration, to scale our Responsible Labour Recruitment Toolkit globally. The Toolkit is designed to help suppliers, and the agencies that recruit employees for our suppliers, perform the due diligence and record keeping required to hire people fairly and ethically. We developed and tested these tools, trained our suppliers on their use and then made them free and available to everyone — enabling companies across industries to accelerate progress in safeguarding the rights of people in their supply chains.

3M+people covered by the Apple Supplier Code of Conduct

50+countries where Apple suppliers operate

26M+people trained on their workplace rights since 2008

We listen. And act.

Education

Accelerating opportunity.

The Apple Supplier Employee Development Fund

Health and Safety

Built smarter.

Helping our suppliers create the safest and most advanced facilities around.

Health and safety at the core.

Everyone has the right to be safe at work. If we find that a supplier isn’t meeting our industry-leading standards, and that their facilities, machines and materials are inadequate, we will not commence work.

As we develop new products, manufacturing techniques and production processes, we constantly evaluate our safety standards. In 2022, we updated our machine safety standards, ensuring the required safety protections are built directly into machines before installation. We trained more than 5,700 people responsible for machine safety at nearly 750 supplier sites on the new standards, helping them to meet our requirements and support safety throughout their facilities.

Incorporating safer and more environmentally preferred materials into our manufacturing processes, like the cleaners and degreasers used during assembly, helps keep people safe. Suppliers are required to uphold our industry-leading chemical safety standards, which include strict measures to make sure their employees and the local environment are safeguarded. And we’re going much further. By collaborating with leading chemical experts and nonprofit organisations that specialise in chemical safety and worker protections, we’re accelerating the adoption of safer, greener materials across the electronics industry.

We partner closely with suppliers to help them build a workplace culture where safety is a constant focus and conversation. In 2022, we trained thousands of leaders at key manufacturing sites on how to build successful cross-functional safety teams, which reinforce safety practices across their business. And from day one, supplier employees are informed of how to speak up if they feel unsafe, including the option to contact Apple directly and anonymously.

Supporting suppliers throughout COVID-19.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have provided our suppliers with the support and tools necessary to safeguard the health of people across their facilities. This includes helping suppliers adjust their operations and facilities as needed, by clearly communicating updates to their employees; staggering shifts to accommodate reduced density; supporting vaccine awareness; providing onsite testing; maintaining thorough deep-cleaning standards; and promoting channels for people to ask questions and share feedback.

We have also provided real-time in-person and virtual support to facilities experiencing outbreaks. And our learnings and safety tools have been shared with more than 200 companies across industries through the Responsible Business Alliance, a leading industry association.

133Facility Readiness Assessments conducted before beginning manufacturing in fiscal year 2022

3K+companies with access to a new IPC global standard for green cleaners in electronics manufacturing, developed by Apple

200+companies across multiple industries able to access Apple’s COVID-19 supply chain protocols and tools