MANILA, Philippines – Following claims by a child labor watchdog that one of its suppliers was hiring underaged workers, Samsung said that it has decided to “temporarily suspend business with the company in question” following its own investigation.

New York-based watchdog China Labor Watch (CLW) earlier accused Samsung of having a supplier – Dongguan Shinyang Electronics Co. Ltd. – that hired at least 5 workers under the age of 16.

CLW also cited additional violations, such as unpaid overtime wages, excessive overtime, and a lack of social insurance and training.

A post on Samsung’s blog noted that Samsung’s earlier inspections of the supplier showed no signs of hiring underage labor.

The company wrote, “Samsung has conducted audits on three occasions since 2013, with the latest one ending on June 25, 2014. No cases of child labor were found during these audits.”

A follow-up investigation after the allegations by CLW, “found evidences of illegal hiring process that took place on June 29.”

“The Chinese authorities are also looking into the case,” it noted.

Samsung added, “Should the investigations conclude that the supplier indeed hired children illegally, Samsung will permanently halt business with the supplier in accordance with its zero tolerance policy on child labor.” – Rappler.com

Child labor image from Shutterstock