Chinese workers rebel against CCP’s quixotic COVID lockdowns; iPhone production hit estimated at 6 million

On November 23rd, Chinese workers rebelled against security personnel in white protective clothing at the “iPhone City” factory compound operated by Foxconn in Zhengzhou in central China’s Henan province. Chinese workers at the world’s biggest Apple iPhone factory were beaten and detained in protests over “Zero COVID” restrictions as tensions mount in the country over the Chinese Communist Party quixotic and increasingly bizarre, illogical, and unworkable COVID lockdown authoritarianism.
The logo of electronics contract manufacturer Foxconn Technology Group, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry, is displayed at its headquarters in Taipei. Photo: Agence France-Presse
Vlad Savov for Bloomberg News:

Turmoil at Apple Inc.’s key manufacturing hub of Zhengzhou is likely to result in a production shortfall of close to 6 million iPhone Pro units this year, according to a person familiar with assembly operations.
The situation remains fluid at the plant and the estimate of lost production could change, the person said, asking not to be named discussing private information. Much will depend on how quickly Foxconn Technology Group, the Taiwanese company that operates the facility, can get people back to assembly lines after violent protests against Covid restrictions. If lockdowns continue in the weeks ahead, production could be set further back…
Apple and Foxconn increased their estimates of the Zhengzhou shortfall over the past two weeks due to growing disruptions, said the person, adding that they expect to be able to make up the 6 million units in lost output in 2023.
The tumult in iPhone City, as the Zhengzhou complex is known, is a stark reminder of the risks for Apple of its vast supply chain in China. Foxconn endeavored to quell protests — largely driven by new hires arriving at Zhengzhou and rejecting onerous Covid controls — by offering a bonus to any workers choosing to return home.

MacDailyNews Take: China is a powder keg. Hopefully, the country devolves to the next natural phase of communist authoritarianism and, someday, hopefully after a miraculous and rare nonviolent revolution, the Chinese people can be free of a desperate dictator’s whims and follies.
As for the CCP”s idiotic “Zero COVID” pipe dream, here’s a bit of how it’s going: