Apple and Foxconn lobbied for a labour reform legislation in Karnataka that should help the Cupertino-giant greatly improve manufacturing prospects in the country.

What Happened? According to a Financial Times report citing several sources, the legislation brings about a landmark change in allowing 12-hour shifts and night-time work for women — similar to manufacturing rules in China.

The legislation also ups the number of allowable overtime hours to 145 over a three-month period, up from 75, and caps maximum working hours at 48 per week.

As per Foxconn, a key contract manufacturer for Apple products in the region states that the new labour laws are crucial to building efficient manufacturing at scale. The Taiwanese entity adds that being able to run production lines with two 12-hour shifts around the clock will be a big step in bringing them closer to their targets.

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The development arrives over a week after the Karnataka government made it known that Apple would soon be assembling iPhones in the state. The state government had set out a 300-acre plot for Apple to set up a plant with its supplier Foxconn.

Over the past couple of years, Apple has been looking to shift its production bases away from China as the country’s strict Covid-related economic restriction disrupts the iPhone makers’ manufacturing output. Rising economic tensions between China and the United States haven’t helped Apple’s cause.

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