The largest iPhone factory in the world needs tens of thousands of new workers in order to return to full operational capacity.
Taiwanese manufacturer Foxconn’s Zhengzhou factories are currently in need of huge amounts of employees following last month’s mass walkouts.
Foxconn has said the company is in need of 100,000 workers to bring the factory up to full production capacity.
Workers departed the facility due to concerns surrounding an outbreak of COVID-19 in the factory last month.
Foxconn leaders and Taiwanese officials have encouraged labor demographics, including retired soldiers and low level government employees, to take shifts at the facilities, promising sign-on bonuses.
Apple warned earlier this month that COVID-19 restrictions are hampering production at the main plant manufacturing the new iPhone 14 Pro in Zhengzhou, China.
Following national pandemic protocol, Foxconn has been forced to isolate and sideline employees thought to have been exposed to the coronavirus.
“The facility is currently operating at significantly reduced capacity,” Apple said in a statement.
Earlier this month, Foxconn quadrupled bonuses for workers who stayed and also began a recruitment drive that advertised higher than usual salaries.
“We continue to see strong demand for iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max models. However, we now expect lower iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max shipments than we previously anticipated and customers will experience longer wait times to receive their new products.”
Apple unveiled the 6.1-inch iPhone 14 Pro and a 6.7-inch iPhone 14 Pro Max in September, both of which are powered by a 5-core GPU and an A16 Bionic chip.
This article is originally published at foxnews.com
