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Letter from the Editors
This month, during China’s annual Two Sessions, several labour rights issues were discussed. One topic was standard working hours and overtime. For example, Lyu Guoquan raised the issue of “right to disconnect”, meaning that workers should not be subjected to work-related messages or be compelled to work outside of their regular hours. It is important for employers to respect regular working hours.
Another proposal focused on guaranteeing that all workers receive paid annual leave. Many factory workers, for instance, often work overtime to make ends meet and suffer from "no leave," "cannot take leave," or "dare not take leave". This lack of time off can significantly impact their health and safety.
Standard working hours, together with sufficient rest hours, are key issues that China Labour Bulletin (CLB) has been closely monitoring in China. The high-level attention given to these matters is encouraging, although it may be a long way for these issues to progress through the legislative process.
Thanks for reading!
CLB Editors
Worker Representation
China Labour Bulletin (CLB) recently reported that in one of Pou Chen’s subsidiaries in China – Yangzhou Baoyi, workers went on strike upon sudden closure, as the company shifted its supply chain from China to other regions (see Yangzhou Baoyi article). CLB conducted further investigation and found out that it is not the first time Pou Chen, the Taiwanese shoe company, announced sudden factory closures and caused chaos, when it was shifting its supply chain out of China.
Pou Chen is the world No.1 shoe supplier and employed over 31 thousand workers across Asian countries in 2022, supplying to international brands such as Nike, Adidas, Asics, New Balance, Timberland and Salomon.
Pou Chen used to employ over 10 thousand employees in Yangxin, Hubei, a town which is famous for shoe making and even has a road named after the company. During the pandemic in 2020, a Chinese government official in Yangxin was preparing to resume the company’s factory production, only to witness Pou Chen announcing the factory’s closure all of a sudden.
- On 27 February, Pou Chen planned to resume production after the Spring Festival.
- On 16 March, we negotiated face-to-face with Pou Chen, also helping the Taiwanese managers enter into China.
- On 24 March, we checked the procedures of preventing and controlling pandemic, fixing 8 April as the date for resuming production.
- On 26 March, we were told that the Yangxin factory would be closed.
- On 31 March, Pou Chen issued an official notice of closing up and firing employees.
Three years later, Pou Chen announced factory closures in Yangzhou, Jiangsu - this time two factories were to close within a month. Even though local government officials were puzzled as Pou Chen abruptly closed the factories, they still had to clean up the mess, especially when workers went on protest. The role of the government quickly shifted to “maintaining stability”, while Pou Chen had the freedom to come and go as it pleased.
CLB found that China’s local governments and trade unions are unprepared for foreign direct investment retreat, leaving workers without protections.
If local governments are aware of trends in factory relocations and take precautionary measures, there will likely be better protection of labour rights and fewer instances of labour conflicts. However, in the case of Yangzhou Baoyi, the trade unions showed a lacklustre response. Instead of representing the workers' interests, the enterprise union at Baoyi appears to align more with the company in dismissing workers, according to CLB’s research of court judgments.
Strike Action
Guangxi steel factory workers protest, source: Douyin
Strikes drop in February. CLB’s strike map collected 92 workers strikes and protests in February 2024, a decrease from 175 in the previous month, possibly due to workers returning home for the Spring Festival holiday. The construction industry, with 54 incidents, remains to have the highest number of protests, followed by the manufacturing industry. Out of the 23 incidents in the manufacturing industry, four were related to the metallic products manufacturing sector. Incidents regarding wage arrears and factory closures or relocations continue to happen in the electronics and garment sectors, with each having three cases. After the Spring Festival holiday, the map recorded two courier workers' protests. One was the result of significant wage cuts, and the other was triggered by grievances over the new regulation of "mandatory doorstep delivery" released by the Ministry of Transport.
Guangxi steel factory workers face dismissal if they don’t work during the Spring Festival holiday. On 15 February, a video about Guangxi Chiji Steel and Iron Factory circulated online, in which a worker complained that workers who did not report to work during the Spring Festival holiday were either fired or had their wages deducted, calling the factory "the most notorious black factory in Wuzhou, Gangxi". According to the worker, the factory also did not grant any days off during the National Day holiday, resulting in an all-year-round work schedule. The factory's excessively strict management style was also criticised by workers and local residents in the comment section. Last year, the factory faced accusations of wage arrears and physical assaults against protesting workers.
Workers’ Requests for Help
Chinese construction workers seek government's help over unpaid wages in Malaysia. According to the “leadership message boards” on 9 February, four workers who followed the state-owned company Tianjin Sinoma Energy Conservation Ltd. to work on a construction project in Malaysia were owed wages. According to the Tianjin government's response, Tianjin Sinoma Energy Conservation has settled the project with the subcontracting company, advising the workers to directly contact the subcontractor. Due to insufficient regulation and legal loopholes, the rights of Chinese overseas workers are difficult to guarantee. Wage arrears, passport confiscation, excessive working hours, and poor working conditions are frequently occurring issues.
Shenzhen Foxconn worker seeks help online over workplace sexual assault and unlawful dismissal. In a lengthy post that was deleted later, a Foxconn female worker recounted her experience of workplace sexual harassment and unlawful dismissal. According to her account, she was molested twice by a male individual in Foxconn uniform after night shifts in 2018. The female worker, along with three other workers who had similar experiences, approached the Longhua Square Women's Federation and the Foxconn labour union to report the situation. However, their requests for installing street lights on the night shift route and raising workers’ awareness about sexual violence were dismissed and rejected. The chairman of the labour union even suggested that the worker's exposure of the incident to the media as being influenced by "foreign forces". In 2021, the worker refused Foxconn's request to transfer her to Foshan or to work the night shift. On 29 February 2024, she wrote in the post that she was unlawfully dismissed. One media outlet attempted to contact the worker but she stopped responding after a few messages.
CLB in the News
China Labour Bulletin was cited in a worker interview article published by Radio Free Asia. As CLB’s Strike Map data show, unpaid wages are currently the leading cause of industrial disputes across China. A crane operator mentioned that he managed to get one paycheck after workers staged a half-day strike ahead of the Lunar New Year Festival. Work is still scarce in the economic downturn, and China’s migrant workers are increasingly having to protest, strike and even fight for the wages they do earn.