TSMC's fab in Phoenix is a hostile work environment according to a lawsuit
Former and current TSMC employees call fab 21 a "hostile work environment"
TSMC's decision to build chip fabrication facilities in Arizona was seen as a big deal in the U.S. TSMC is the leading contract chip manufacturer in the world. The chips that TSMC makes are for companies that design chips but have no manufacturing facilities. These so-called "fabless" chip designers (a fab is a facility that fabricates chips) include big tech companies like Apple, Nvidia, Qualcomm, MediaTek, Broadcom, and AMD to name a few.
Both President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden had a hand in having TSMC come to Arizona
The vast majority of TSMC's chips are produced in Taiwan and the U.S. has been desperately seeking to become self-sufficient in the semiconductor arena. The first Trump administration paved the way for TSMC to build the factories in the States while President Biden signed the the CHIPS and Science Act that helped provide billions of dollars in subsidies that allowed TSMC to plan the construction of up to six fabs in Arizona.
But there have been some problems getting American workers on the same page as the TSMC employees flown into the U.S. to oversee the construction and the operations of the fabs. For example, fire safety expert David Amiri was hired in 2022 to protect the first TSMC factory built in Phoenix. But when he pointed out safety issues, his bosses accused him of creating problems.
Amiri is one of 28 current and former TSMC employees who are suing the company in Federal Court. The suit accuses the chip manufacturer of discrimination, hosting a hostile work environment, and allowing safety issues to be present. The lawsuit also claims that TSMC yells at Americans calling them "lazy," and "stupid" while East Asian employees are favored. The lawsuit states that TSMC "routinely subjects non-East Asians to a hostile work environment where verbal abuse, gaslighting, isolation and humiliation is common."
The current and former employees are represented by attorney Daniel Kotchen who stated, "The allegation is that TSMC engages in what's called a pattern or practice of discrimination where there is favoritism." While TSMC failed to comment to the local ABC affiliate in Phoenix, the foundry did respond in court filings in which it says that the 160-page lawsuit is "full of lurid, fabricated stories with no relevance to their legal claims and for the purposes of promoting public scandal and defaming TSMC."
Back in 2022, we wrote about the early days of this issue. An anonymous post made back in 2022 by an American TSMC employee complained about long working hours and excessive meetings. In that article, we cited the clash of cultures and now it has led to this lawsuit.
Antonio Fisher is another former American who was working at the TSMC fab in Phoenix. "The reason why I took the job at TSMC is because I know they’re the industry leaders," he said. He was quickly disillusioned by the number of safety violations he saw. One such violation was the failure of employees to use safety equipment that prevented machinery from starting accidentally during maintenance.
TSMC did not take U.S. employees seriously claims the lawsuit
What happened to Fisher seems to have been the experience of many U.S. employees. "We weren’t taken seriously. The more we spoke out, the more we were ostracized and considered troublemakers." This dovetails with claims made in the lawsuit stating that "...TSMC disfavors older American workers and women, alleging that recruiters are instead expected to seek out "young talents."
While TSMC refused to respond to the lawsuit, it did release a comment that said, "We’re proud of the global team of more than 3000 people that has come together to make our new facility in Arizona a success, and we look forward to growing the site into a major center of American semiconductor manufacturing excellence. TSMC is committed to providing a safe, welcoming, and inclusive environment for our employees, contractors, and everyone who works at our facilities around the world."
One fab in Arizona is currently manufacturing 4nm chips and is shipping to customers like Apple. Currently, 10,000 wafers per month are being produced with plans to ramp up to 30,000 per month over the next couple of years.
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