Apple's supplier employees in India included in the firm's $50 mn education fund

Expanding access to learning opportunities and skills development for people across its supply chain, Apple today announced a $50 million Supplier Employee Development fund. This new education initiative will make training and coursework available to supplier employees in the US, China, India and Vietnam to start with. By 2023, Apple expects more than 100,000 supplier employees to participate in new learning opportunities — from leadership training and technical certifications to classes on coding, robotics, and advanced manufacturing fundamentals, including green manufacturing.

Under this initiative, Apple will bring new development opportunities to supplier employees across India. It will offer a wide range of programming, including leadership training for local supervisors, automation training that will give participants the tools to gain technical expertise that will allow them to advance in their roles, and more. For this, Apple will work with partners, both new and old, to deliver content and intends to develop a new curriculum to meet the needs of the employees across India. It will help the employees in their personal and professional development.

The iPhone-maker estimates that tens of thousands of employees across India will be able to participate in programs through the fund over the course of the next year. And the Cupertino giant will continue to scale this program to even more supplier employees in India and around the world.

As part of the new $50 million commitment, Apple is working alongside supply chain partners to amplify worker voice. That includes supporting the worker rights programs created by the International Labour Organization (ILO) for people in the electronics sector, and the work the International Organization for Migration (IOM) is doing to expand rights training and scale its industry-leading responsible labour recruitment tools.

“We put people first in everything that we do, and we’re proud to announce a new commitment to accelerate our progress and provide even more opportunities for people across our supply chain,” said Sarah Chandler, Apple’s senior director of Environment and Supply Chain Innovation. “Together with rights advocates and education leaders, we are continuing to drive new innovation to support people and the planet,” she added.

“At IOM, we understand that supply chain responsibility is complex, and must be driven by innovation, results, and partnerships,” said Amy Pope, IOM’s deputy director general for Management and Reform.

“Improving people’s lives must be at its core. The IOM and Apple partnership has proven results in Apple’s own supply chain and paves the way for others in the industry to follow. To effect real change, we need global collaboration that engages workers, NGOs, government, and industry. Apple’s new commitments will have tangible, meaningful benefits for workers around the world,” Pope added.

Apple has been offering in-person and virtual education, skill-building, and enrichment courses since 2008, providing opportunities for people in its supply chain to gain new technical and leadership skills. With the launch of the Supplier Employee Development Fund, Apple is significantly expanding the scope of these offerings, with new educational resources for people in its supply chain — and the surrounding communities — to develop the skills necessary for the jobs of today and tomorrow.

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