Foxconn Wage Hikes Raise Local Rent Prices in Shenzhen

Rents are increasing

There has been lots of talk about working conditions at Foxconn over the past few months, in no small part because Foxconn is an Apple supplier and any news with “Apple” in the title gets noticed. Certainly, there appear to be serious problems at Foxconn, but it’s worth remembering that in the overall spectrum on Chinese factories, Foxconn is far better than most, which is why workers are still fighting for jobs there. Moreover, the negative reports have led to wage increases for Foxconn workers; increases so significant that they’re affecting rent prices in the areas around the factory.

At the beginning of 2010, an average Foxconn worker at the Shenzhen plant made 900 RMB ($142) per month. Today, thanks to a series of wage hikes, that same worker makes between 1800 and 2500 RMB ($285-396) per month. That’s great, but unfortunately, it has also inspired the landlords in the area around the factory to raise their rents, especially on tiny one-room offerings that are typically inhabited by Foxconn workers. In some cases, these rents have nearly doubled over the past year. A reporter with the Guangzhou Daily found that a 15 square meter room that rented for 350 RMB ($55) per month a year ago costs 500-600 RMB ($79-95) per month now.

Workers are complaining the rent raises are unfair, but there’s little Foxconn can do about it, apart from potentially offering more space in its own worker dormitories. In any event, the fact that local salaries are affecting rent is at least evidence that Foxconn’s wage increases are real and that the factories are still attractive enough to workers that nearby landlords can successfully rent out housing at such high prices.

[Guangzhou Daily via Sina Tech]