1/ This week, factory workers in Zhongshan, Guangdong province, are on strike with 20 demands for their employer, Zhongshan Eurotec, aka Music Tribe, which produces electronic music equipment for Behringer. The factory employs about 1,100 workers. clb.org.hk/en/content/clo… 2/ When posting online videos about the strike, workers show long security lines that they have to pass through before clocking in (and often getting marked tardy) and also after they clock out for the day. They also get screened four other times during the work day.

1/ On 8 May, about 100 factory workers in Shenzhen went on strike for unpaid wages and benefits, after the company said it would close. They blocked the gate with a banner: "We rationally and legally appeal to Xin’an Electrics in Shenzhen to pay up our housing provident fund!" 2/ Employers in China are required to pay into various social insurance accounts, and the housing provident fund is a private account designed to assist with purchasing property. About 50 workers signed a letter to the local govt seeking enforcement of their wages and benefits.

1/ On 16 Feb 2023, Kaisheng Shoe Factory workers in Hunan province went on strike over layoffs and unpaid wages, and police were dispatched to the scene. Meanwhile, the local government had recently praised the factory for its “inspiration” to the city.
clb.org.hk/content/over-h… 2/ The local trade union was similarly operating in a parallel universe: it had organised empty International Women’s Day activities and political sessions rather than understanding the needs of workers and representing them in the face of ongoing layoffs.

1/ CLB investigated three cases of #women workers in #China facing #discrimination and rights violations related to #maternityleave. We found these incidents through local governments' online message boards and referred the cases to the union. Read more: clb.org.hk/content/three-… 2/ Regarding family leave policies, the ACFTU has the opportunity to ensure both that workers' rights are protected and that state policy goals are upheld, contributing to the union’s political and practical missions. However, in these three cases, the union was not eager to act.

中国劳工通讯祝福所有女性 #国际妇女节 快乐！在九张照片中，让我们一起回顾中国大陆女性劳动者的过去一年。
1/ 2022年8月，弦子诉朱军性骚扰案二审开庭。终因证据不足，维持驳回原告诉讼请求的原判。（图片来源：法新社） 2/ 2022年10月，Jingyao诉刘强东性侵案达成庭前协议后，支持Jingyao的人们在法庭前拉起横幅。（图片来源：女权之声 | 摄影：Feilin Gao）

1/ CLB followed headlines in China last month, and in our November 2022 news roundup we’re sharing brief summaries of stories affecting China’s workers: clb.org.hk/content/novemb… 2/ Urban villages in Guangzhou went on lockdown and vulnerable migrant workers were chaotically relocated. Urban villages are densely packed and have health and safety issues in ordinary times, and some workers were left homeless and in limbo last month. archive.ph/LyKct#selectio…

【鼓励生育国策下女工产假权益亟待维护 工会女工委员会何故“神隐”？】
clb.org.hk/zh-hans/conten… 1/ 疫情之下，国家与社会在年轻女性身上投入了大量的“期待”——她们既要“为国生三胎”，缓解人口危机，同时还要独自应对生活、就业、工作等种种困难。职场女性在国家“完备的法律和制度”保障下，不但随时遭遇着来自企业雇主的产假剥削，更在维权过程中陷入“不知道找谁”的困境。

【快递货车司机车祸亡 陷劳动关系认定黑洞 行业工会称“没能力作为”】 clb.org.hk/zh-hans/conten… 1/ 10月9日，申通快递一辆大货车从成都出发前往南宁。清晨8时左右，大货车车后部起火，司机何小钦和同事罗某下车扑救时，遭身后货车撞击后两人不幸身亡。
两名司机面对着平台经济工人遭遇人身意外时的共同问题——公司以苛刻且不公平的合同拒绝承认二人的劳动关系，也就令他们的死亡难以经过工伤索赔。

1/ This personal account is unfortunately typical of working conditions for China's pandemic prevention personnel. CLB found that in Shanghai earlier this year the pay was 100-200 yuan per day, and some ended up not getting paid. Our June 2022 story here: clb.org.hk/content/pandem…

https://twitter.com/chenchenzh/status/1597681022195273729

2/ Shanghai brought in over 10k workers for the spring 2022 lockdown. Some "da bai" were promised they could quarantine before returning home to their families, but then were placed in isolation facilities with confirmed/suspected cases and they protested. clb.org.hk/content/pandem…

1/ Ahead of the annual 11 November #SinglesDay, China Labour Bulletin has launched an English-language explainer on the platform economy in China, as part of our series, What You Need to Know About Workers in China. #gigeconomy clb.org.hk/content/platfo… 2/ We originally published this explainer in Chinese, available here: clb.org.hk/zh-hans/conten…

1/ Covid-19 cases at the world’s largest iPhone plant in China drove mgmt to lock down workers in unsafe conditions, and thousands of them fled on foot. The crisis might have been averted by heeding workers’ calls, which is the job of a real trade union.
clb.org.hk/content/foxcon… 2/ In a now-deleted video, one Foxconn worker said, "I thought coming here would be a new start, but I didn’t expect it to be like jumping into a big fire pit. Now, I’m here amid the fire and water. No matter how we struggle, it’s to no avail."

1/ Today, CLB published a new report about rights protection (维权 weiquan) and legal aid services for workers in China. You can read our full report online here, or choose to download it as a pdf instead. clb.org.hk/content/clb-re… 2/ China has prioritised legal aid over civil society responses such as collective organizing and NGOs and worker centres. As such, the role of the official trade union has become more prominent, especially as it has been urged to reform and change its bureaucratic ways.

Iit’s now popular to link square dancing grannies to the Maoist Red Guards who ran roughshod around the country and are now entering their twilight years; in fact they aren’t a legacy of Maoism, but rather a product of the country’s reform period. sixthtone.com/news/1003462/r… Prior to the country’s market reforms, China guaranteed every citizen a job, housing, and health care, at least in theory. Over the past 40 years, however, much of that already imperfect welfare system was dismantled. sixthtone.com/news/1003462/r…