Apple envisions healthcare expansion to 1m women globally

New Delhi : American tech MNC Apple revealed plans to provide enhanced healthcare packages for one million women at its supplier countries around the world by 2020.

As per the company's 12th annual Supplier Responsibility Progress Report, Apple said a new preventive healthcare curriculum is essential to encourage women to focus on their personal health and share that knowledge with their families and communities.

"We believe that everyone making Apple products deserves to be treated with dignity and respect and we're proud that almost 15 million people understand their workplace rights as a result of the work we've done over the years.

We're going further with health education programs and new opportunities for advancement at our suppliers," said Apple COO Jeff Williams.

In 2016, Apple had launched a program to help improve health awareness for women at its suppliers, in order to ensure greater preparedness to take control of their health.

The program started at facilities in India and China and provided information and access to services, including self-examination for early cancer detection, nutrition, personal care and maternal health.

Taking this forward, Apple aims to improve working conditions at supplier facilities through its preventive health care curriculum and reach out to one million women by 2020.

Among its other initiatives, Apple, in its mission to help protect the planet, had initiated the creation of a greener supply chain.

In this regard, all iPhone final assembly sites around the world have now been certified as zero waste to landfill.

Furthermore, Apple's products were increasingly made using renewable energy, while also reducing overall energy usage and carbon emissions.

Suppliers working with Apple also implemented energy efficiency improvements that reduced more than 320,000 annualised metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions in 2017, the report said.

In order to address challenges in recruiting qualified factory line leaders, Apple introduced the Factory Line Leader Program to bridge the gap between skills and employment by providing practical vocational skills and guaranteed internships with an Apple supplier, as well as long-term, full-time employment opportunities.

In the last 10 years, Apple said more than 2.5 million supplier employees took education classes, ranging from language skills to software development, and 12,000 are graduating with a degree.

Through these initiatives, Apple aims to continue raising the standard of its facilities across the world.