Hold Foxconn Accountable on Hiring, Environment, Says Gubernatorial Democrat

If elected Wisconsin governor, Democratic nominee Tony Evers would hold Foxconn’s “feet to the fire on many things” to ensure “they’re the best corporate citizens possible,” he told WisconsinEye. Gov. Scott Walker (R), who's seeking a third term and helped negotiate the contract offering Foxconn $3 billion in cash incentives to build a display fab in southeast Wisconsin (see 1711130014), hasn’t held Foxconn “to any accountability” to hire women and minorities for the project, said Evers, state superintendent of public instruction. “We’re going to renegotiate that part” of the contract, he said. “That is critical to the state.” Evers also will seek Foxconn assurances that the 7 million gallons of water it extracts from Lake Michigan to operate the plant “won’t go back in in a way that’s detrimental” to the state’s entire eastern shore, he said. “Those were basic things that were left on the table in this rush to subsidize a foreign country.” Evers thinks Foxconn’s leaders “do want to be good corporate citizens” but have never been asked to, he said. Foxconn and Walker representatives didn’t comment.