Big Labor Is a Big Barrier to Apple’s India Ambitions

India is front and center of Apple’s plans to diversify production away from China. But shaky infrastructure isn’t the only obstacle. There is another crucial complicating factor: a powerful and independent labor movement.

That is a major difference from China where, for better or worse, labor unions don’t exist as a political force independent of the ruling Communist Party. And with India’s contentious general elections coming up in early 2024, nascent labor reforms that are important to Apple’s plans could get caught up in the political crossfire.