Apple: We Don't Turn 'Blind Eye' to Factories

Accusations that Apple overlooks serious safety issues with its suppliers are "patently false and offensive," said company CEO Tim Cook in an email to Apple employees, reports Reuters. Cook's email, excerpted at 9to5mac.com, came after a scathing article in the New York Times about factory working conditions at Chinese suppliers. "What we will not do—and never have done—is stand still or turn a blind eye to problems in our supply chain," said Cook. "On this you have my word."

Earlier this month, Apple responded to criticisms by publishing a list of all its suppliers for the first time, instead of just the results of an independent safety audit, as it had in the past. Cook also said Apple had opened its entire supply chain to monitoring by an outside labor organization to create "more frequent and more transparent reporting on our supply chain." He directed employees to follow progress here. (More Apple stories.)