Apple contractor Foxconn ramps up hiring at China factory ahead of iPhone 17

The world’s largest iPhone factory in Zhengzhou, in central Hunan province, has started increasing pay scales to lure temporary workers.

A Tuesday post on WeChat by one of Foxconn’s recruiting agencies said workers who stayed at the factory for three months would qualify for a bonus of up to 8,000 yuan (US$1,113), a significant hike from early July when the three-month bonus was up to 4,500 yuan.

Workers can earn 28 yuan per hour, up from 23.5 yuan per hour in early July. The hourly rate was raised to 24 yuan in mid-July, 25 yuan later last month, and 27 yuan in early August, according to recruitment agency Zhengzhou Fugonglian Human Resources.

In Shenzhen, the tech hub in southern Guangdong province, Foxconn’s Integrated Digital Product Business Group – responsible for smartphone manufacturing – is offering 26 yuan per hour for contract workers, according to a recruitment notice posted on WeChat on Wednesday. The notice said the rate lasts until November 30.

In the same factory, workers responsible for other products earn a lower rate. For example, the post said that the Bluetooth earphone unit paid 22 yuan per hour.