Amnesty International has accused Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), Samsung and Sony (NYSE: SNE), among others, of failing to do basic checks to ensure minerals used in their products are not mined by children.
In a report into cobalt mining in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, it found children as young as seven working in dangerous conditions.
Cobalt is a a vital component of lithium-ion batteries. The firms said that theirs was a zero-tolerance policy towards child labour.
The DRC produces at least 50% of the world's cobalt. Amnesty said miners working in the area face long-term health problems and the risk of fatal accidents.
The group claimed that at least 80 miners had died underground in southern DRC between September 2014 and December 2015. Amnesty also collected the testimonies of children who allegedly work in the mines. UNICEF estimates that there are approximately 40,000 children working in mines across southern DRC.
Apple said that it conducts rigorous audits on its supply chain and any supplier found hiring underage workers is forced to:
1)fund the worker's safe return home
2) finance the worker's education at a school chosen by the worker or his/her family
3) continue to pay the worker's wages
4) offer him or her a job when he or she reaches legal age to work.
Apple shares opened Tuesday trade up 13 cents from Friday's close at $97.26 U.S., within a 52-week trading range of $92.00 to $134.54, while Sony stock in New York jumped $1.08 Tuesday morning to $22.52 U.S. within a 52-week range of $20.66 to $32.95 U.S.
