Dell severs ties to recycler using prison labor
By David Koenig
Associated Press
DALLAS — Dell Computer Corp. said last week it will stop using a recycling vendor that relies on prison labor and has hired two new contractors to perform the work.
The computer giant has been under intense pressure to sever ties with UNICOR, a government-run corporation that uses federal prison inmates for a variety of moneymaking ventures.
The Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, an environmental group in California, accused Dell of running a "primitive" recycling system that exposed inmates to dangerous chemicals as they took apart computers and plucked out reusable parts.
The report cast Dell's rival for worldwide PC sales, Hewlett-Packard Co., as the environmentally sensitive recycler.
Dell plans to hire Dallas-based Resource Concepts Inc. and California-based Image Microsystems Inc., which has locations in Los Angeles and Austin, Texas.
Dell spokesman Bryant Hilton said customers raised questions about the use of prison labor but said the switch in vendors was not related to the report.
"Did we hear some comments from customers and stakeholders? Absolutely," said Hilton. "But we didn't make a decision based on pressure. The report ... was not at all motivating this decision."
Hilton said Dell, which earned $2.1 billion last year on revenue of more than $35 billion, hired UNICOR because it charged less for recycling but that other vendors have recently lowered their rates.
Dell won't face a penalty for ending the contract. Hilton declined to release financial terms of the contract.
UNICOR, a trade name for the Federal Prison Industries, says it provides job skills to inmates by using them to produce goods for sale to the federal government and for private companies. Calls to UNICOR officials in Washington were not immediately returned.
Dell, which is based in Round Rock, Texas, said it is building a national network of approved recyclers to improve the economics and convenience of computer recycling for customers and properly dispose of old systems with minimal environmental impact.
Dell said RCI and Image Microsystems had agreed to conditions for doing the recycling work, including not exporting environmentally sensitive waste to developing countries or dumping it in landfills. Dell said it was also considering other recycling vendors.
According to environmental officials, the most troublesome ingredient in old computers is lead from cathode ray tubes and solder used on the motherboard. Some states, including California, ban disposal of cathode ray tubes in landfills.
At least 25 states have policies for recycling computers, televisions and other electronic devices.
Dell began recycling computers from consumers in October, when it offered the service for free — if the customer shipped the machine to Dell, a costly proposition. In March, the company switched to a $15 fee and offered to pick up the old machine. Since then, Dell has collected more than 750 tons of obsolete computers. It has offered discounts on peripherals and other incentives for consumers to recycle their old equipment.
