ESWN has translated an article in Southern Weekend which gives a history of the illegal brick kilns in Shanxi Province:
There are not a lot of village enterprises in Caosheng village, so most of the able-bodied young people go outside to find work, or else they dig coal in the nearby coal mines. The brick kiln work requires physical strength, but the wages are far less than coal mining. That is why very few young people are willing to do this work.
The local government disclosed that there are 93 brick kilns in Hongdong county, of which 95% have no legal permits. Our reporters spoke to many brick kiln owners and learned that the sticky earth material is practically free and so labor costs account for most of the operating expenses. Therefore, “you must work on the labor costs if you want to increase profits.” [Full Text]
Xinhua is also reporting an update on the case:
Six civil servants in connection with the forced labor scandal in north China’s Shanxi Province are being investigated for dereliction, sources with the local procuratorate said on Saturday. [Full Text]
