Violence erupts between workers and the police at Foxconn's plant in Zhengzhou

China's Zhengzhou district witnessed a violent clash between hundreds of Foxconn workers and the police on Tuesday night. The district, which is also dubbed as "iPhone city" due to Foxconn's largest factory, has been under strict COVID curbs since mid-October.

The clash began after hundreds of workers started a protest overnight over unpaid wages and fear of an infectious outbreak at the plant. Many workers were seriously injured after their squabble with the police.

Foxconn's Zhengzhou plant is the company's largest factory in the world that employs more than 200,000 workers. However, due to China's zero-COVID policy, the whole district of Zhengzhou has been under strict lockdown.

The violence is part of the growing tension at the district due to the lockdown. Many workers have also fled the factory, and the district itself over frustrations about how the virus outbreak is being handled by China and insufficient food rations for the residents.

The policy has resulted in supply shortage of the iPhone 14 series before the holiday season. Both Apple and Foxconn are taking preemptive steps to reduce the short supply by boosting productions in Foxconn's Shanghai, China and Chennai, India plants.

Source: Bloomberg (paywall)