About Dell

Dell Computers manufacturers computers and computer-related equipment which it sells directly to the public by phone or internet. The company employed 66,100 people and recorded sales of $55.91 billion in fiscal 2006.

Contact Dell

Dell
1 Dell Way
Round Rock, TX 78682-2244 USA
Phone: 512-338-4400
Web: www.dell.com

Current Campaigns

The Campaign for Safe, Healthy Consumer Products
The Campaign for Safe, Healthy Consumer Products seeks to raise the public's awareness about polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a potentially harmful chemical found in everything from siding to shower curtains. The Campaign also identifies and contacts companies that manufacture or sell products containing PVCs and urges them to use safe materials. Although Dell has created a timeline to phase out PVCs, the chemical is still present in current Dell models. Find out ways you can urge the industry to step up its efforts to phase out PVCs.
www.besafenet.com/pvc/

Electronics TakeBack Coalition
The Electronics TakeBack Coalition, formerly the Computer TakeBack Campaign, aims to protect the health and well being of electronics users, workers, and the communities where electronics are produced and discarded by requiring consumer electronics manufacturers and brand owners to take full responsibility for the life cycle of their products, through effective public policy requirements or enforceable agreements.
www.computertakeback.com

Complaints, Abuses, and Scandals

Ethics and Governance

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) began a formal investigation of Dell’s accounting and financial reporting matters. In August 2006, Dell revealed that the SEC was conducting an informal investigation regarding its accounting practices, including revenue recognition and end-of-quarter policies. The SEC first gave Dell notice about accounting practices in August 2005. Dell postponed reporting its quarterly results due to the “level of complexity” the company now faces with the SEC.

-- BBC News, 11/17/2006
Source URL: news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6157496.stm

Miami resident Juan C. Arteaga initiated a class-action lawsuit against Dell Financial Services, LP, claiming the organization violated the Equal Credit Opportunity Act by denying credit to individuals based on their ethnic backgrounds. According to the complaint, Dell had confirmed Mr. Arteaga's credit application and had already accepted his down payment for a new computer system when he was notified that the credit application was being denied because the company's verification department believed that Mr. Arteaga could not speak English and that a non-English speaker could not guarantee an account on the grounds that they may not understand the terms and conditions of the agreement. The case argues that despite Mr. Arteaga's impeccable credit, Dell made a judgment based on his accent and ethnic background. Dell's refusal to provide him credit is being referred to as a "clear and direct violation of the [Equal Credit Opportunity] Act."

-- Daily Business Review, 05/08/2006
Source URL: www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1147091731640

In 2006, Kevin B. Rollins, Dell's Chief Executive Officer, made $ $9,067,292 in total compensation including stock option grants from Dell Inc.

-- AFL-CIO, 04/05/2006
Source URL: www.aflcio.org/corporatewatch/paywatch/ceou/database.cfm?tkr=DELL&pg=1

According to the Social Investment Research Analyst Network, ten years after the Federal Glass Ceiling Commission recommended disclosure of diversity data as a way to remove barriers and promote women and minority advancement, most US companies still fail to fully disclose Equal Employment Opportunity data to the public. Dell is listed as one of the companies that does not provide full public disclosure. Rather, full disclosure is only made available to the public upon request.

-- Social Investment Research Analyst Network (SIRAN), 12/07/2005
Source URL: www.siran.org/eeo1.php

According to the North Carolina Institute for Constitutional Law (NCICL), Dell used unfair bargaining tactics to win $242 million in tax credits from the state government and an additional $37.2 million in local subsidies from city counsels in 2004. In the interest of creating more jobs, the state government made a generous deal with Dell involving perks such as a $15 per unit tax credit on every computer and consumer device produced in 2006, requiring local community colleges to create a Dell specific training program, and allowing $10,000 per year tuition deduction for Dell employees at Wake Forest University. In exchange, Dell was asked to meet limited constraints including covering some worker healthcare costs and not firing half of the plant's employees before an agreed upon date.

-- The Register, 06/23/2005
Source URL: www.theregister.co.uk/2005/06/23/dell_nc_suit/

During the 2002 election cycle, Dell gave $425,250 in soft money contributions, $415,250 of which went to Republicans, and $10,000 of which went to Democrats.

-- Center for Responsive Politics, 06/09/2003
Source URL: www.opensecrets.org/softmoney/softcomp2.asp?txtName=Dell+Computer&txtU...

Environment

In the quarterly “Guide to Greener Electronics,” published by Greenpeace, electronic companies are ranked based on their use of toxic chemicals and electronic waste policies. In the September 2007 edition of the guide, Dell shared the second highest ranking of 7.3 out of 10 with Lenovo. Greenpeace commended Dell for its timelines for substituting toxic polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and brominated flame retardants (BFRs), and financing the end-of-life management of their products. However, the company currently has no products free of PVC and BFRs available on the market. Greenpeace hopes electronic companies and their manufacturers will become responsible for the full life cycle of their products.

-- Greenpeace, 06/27/2007
Source URL: www.resourcesaver.org/file/toolmanager/CustomO16C45F83079.pdf

On the 2005 Computer Report Card, published jointly by the Computer TakeBack Campaign and the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, Dell received a score of 35 for their policies regarding electronics take back, disposal procedures and the materials used in their computers. Dell was the second highest scorer on the report card, behind only HP.

-- Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, 03/07/2006
Source URL: svtc.etoxics.org/site/PageServer?pagename=svtc_computer_report_card

Labor

Foxconn Electronics, a factory located in China that supplies $20.7 billion worth of products annually to Apple, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Intel and Sony, and other top name brands, has come under criticism for alleged labor violations. According to British newspaper the Mail on Sunday, labor rights violations at Foxconn Electronics include the following:

• Wages below the legal minimum, with workers reportedly earning $50 a month
• Routine work shifts of 15 hours
• Poor and unsafe working conditions
• Inadequate dormitories

China Labor Bulletin research director Robin Munro stated, "They're not sharing proportionally in the benefits and profits in this huge globalization effort…. The only reason they can survive in these cities is because all they do is work." Foxconn states that there are huge discrepancies between the truth and allegations cited in the report.

-- Associated Press, 06/16/2006
Source URL: www.wired.com/news/technology/0,71176-0.html?tw=wn_technology_1

Health and Safety

Dell agreed to recall and replace 4.1 million of its laptop computer batteries made by Sony due to a glitch that can cause the batteries to burst into flames. The faulty Sony batteries were installed in notebooks that were shipped between April 1, 2004, and July 18, 2006. Dell spokesman Ira Williams stated, "In rare cases, a short-circuit could cause the battery to overheat, causing a risk of smoke and/or fire...It happens in rare cases, but we opted to take this broad action immediately."

-- Associated Press, 08/15/2006
Source URL: news.com.com/Dell+to+recall+4+million+batteries/2100-1044_3-6105486.ht...