Hundreds of police officers forcefully suppress the strike of workers of Nanhua Company in Danzao Town, Foshan (Photo source: video screenshot)
On March 18 and 19, thousands of employees of Nanhua Metal & Gemstone Craft Co., Ltd. in Danzao Town, Nanhai District, Foshan City, Guangdong Province, held a general strike to protest against the company’s disguised pay cut and its failure to pay social security, etc. The workers gathered at the factory gate and blocked the road. The authorities deployed dozens of police cars and hundreds of police officers to forcefully suppress the striking workers, and many protesting employees were arrested.
Comprehensive media reports, South China is the largest company in Danzao town, formerly there are about 8,000 employees, currently there are 4,000 or 5,000 employees, and most of them are veteran employees who have worked for more than 10 years.
Some employees who were at the scene revealed that the strike protest started around 6:00 pm on March 18, when employees spontaneously gathered at the entrance of the factory and refused to go to work, eventually gathering 2,000 or 3,000 employees. The authorities then deployed more than 70 police vehicles and hundreds of police officers. But on the night of the 18th police did not arrest anyone.
By the early morning of the 19th, authorities deployed more police officers and police cars. Video posted by netizens showed many police cars driving by one after another in the night with sirens blaring.
Employees at the scene reported that on the morning of the 19th, the authorities deployed 400 or 500 special police and public security officers and began arresting employees for striking and protesting. The video shows many SWAT officers lined up in an array to remove the striking workers from the road. A special police officer, holding a megaphone, shouted, “Please leave quickly within one minute or the police will forcibly take them away.” The video shows some employees being escorted away by the police.
Employees revealed that about 4, 5 or 10 people were taken away.
The video shows that the manager of the company came out to coordinate during the strike.
It is reported that when the work started after the New Year this year, the workers’ work was changed from the previous hourly system to the current piecework system, and the employees’ monthly salary dropped from the previous 4,000 to 5,000 yuan to 2,000 to 3,000 yuan, and many of them had to take another job after work in order to make ends meet.
Workers also revealed that 90% of the employees are now unable to resign because of social security issues, the company did not pay social security to the employees, and workers asked the company to make up for the front social insurance.
South China was established on October 21, 1996, and its business scope includes the production and operation of cases, straps, semi-precious stone craft products, metal ornaments, assembled clocks and watches, metal crafts manufacturing, etc., as well as trade agency.
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