Labor unrest is on the upsurge in China, according to the International Herald Tribune: “About 6,800 workers at China Resources, a Hong Kong-listed retailer, are on strike for a seventh week in northern China, alleging that the company is forcing them to sign “unfair” labor contracts, according to China Labour Bulletin, a research group in Hong Kong. China Resources officials declined to answer questions about the strike. The strike is one of several in China. In Anhui province, about 10,000 textile workers and retirees recently protested decreases in pension payments, the lack of medical insurance and compensation for injuries, according to China Labour Bulletin. In northern China, about 1,000 workers at Shaanxi Precision Alloy protested a takeover, a U.S. labor-rights group, China Labor Watch, said. ” The full report is here.
(Knight Ridder also has an article entitled “Large-scale local protests erupting more often in China’s hinterlands” on this subject.)
