Women face poor working conditions in Samsung factory

In a study published by The Research Center for Gender Family and Environment and Development (CGFED) and IPEN, a global network of NGO's working to reduce harmful chemicals in the world, Samsung was the subject of scrutiny. More to the point, the focus was the dangerous and abusive working environment in their factory in Vietnam. The factory accounts for fifty percent of Samsung's production of smartphones and provides a large boost to the Vietnamese economy.

However, this is the first study of it's kind to shed light on these allegedly terrible Working Conditions.

The terrible conditions for women

The study was done with a group of 45 workers that were predominately women. All of the workers described fainting, fatigue, and dizziness. Standing for eight to 12 hours, with little or no breaks is common. They also report problems with eyesight, stomach pains, bloody noses, and body aches. Pregnant workers describe being made to stand for their entire shift and having pay taken out of their wages for taking breaks. Miscarriages are commonplace and even an expected event at the factory.

The study also cites the need for more research on the exposure of chemicals in the factory.

Findings come as Samsung finds success

This study comes on the heels of Samsung recording high profits. The cell phone giant posted a third-quarter operating profit of $14.5 trillion. They are on the way to a record full-year profit. That is a lot for the biggest maker of smartphones in the world. It has also announced the design of their new phones earlier this week with plans to release their new phones in April of 2018, according to Forbes.

What does it mean for the workers

It is hard to say what will happen to all of the workers in the Vietnam plant. Although the study was performed by a Hanoi based company, Samsung denies all of the allegations made against them This is not the first time that a cell phone giant has been rumored to ignore employee abuses. As one of the advisers of IPEN expressed on the company's website regarding the study that companies are making a lot of money off of the backs of mostly women workers who are not treated fairly.

He hopes that strong, fair regulations can be passed to help ensure the safety of workers in those plants.

The company hopes that both consumers and policymakers can at least understand what it is that their female employees must endure. This is considered an ongoing piece of news that will certainly evolve over the new few weeks and months.