Daqing Oilfield Workers’ Struggle (4)

(Broadcast on 8 March, 2002)

The mass street demonstrations of Daqing Oilfield’s retrenched workers are in their eighth day today. Daqing City Government confirmed earlier that about 50,000 workers participated in the largest demonstration on 4 March, Monday. Today, on 8 March, the demonstrations are still continuing. The front of Daqing Petroleum Administration Bureau (PAB) is still cordoned off; traffic is still being diverted from the site. I called the Administration Bureau Complaints Office where someone said that they had set up a temporary task force to take care of the demonstrations and asked me to call there. I called the task force headquarters.

DPAB Official:

No need to call us directly, I can’t answer your questions. Get in touch with the relevant authorities.

I also called Ranghu Road Police Station.

Police:

In any case, we have to go there every day. We don’t even know what the situation is; we cannot talk about it indiscriminately. In any case, we have to go there every day.

One public transportation company worker confirmed that the location was still cordoned off today, and buses had to be diverted.

Worker:

I don’t know what the situation is today; the route is perfectly normal.

Han:

Is the traffic diverted?

Worker:

I don’t know, I’ll ask someone. (He is asking colleagues:How do the buses go today? Answer:Still on Ranghu Road, bypassing Wuqi Avenue. Question:Where are they? Is the Administration Bureau still cordoned off? Answer:Yes. It is cordoned off.) The Administration Bureau is still cordoned off; we are still making a detour.

Han:

Roughly how many people are there?

Worker:

Once the traffic is diverted, we can’t see how many people there are. If the police are there, we just have to make a detour.

In our report of 5 March, one public transportation worker was quoted saying that a lot of workers who took part in the demonstrations did not buy tickets. But today, this worker said that only a few people did that. She added, originally she also refused to be retrenched and that was how she kept her present job.

Worker:

Very few. Only a few didn’t pay. Generally they all paid. There are different qualities among people.

Han:

What do workers in your company think about workers demonstrating on the streets?

Worker:

There are a lot of retrenched workers around us, so there is a degree of sympathy. Now I have a job. Retrenched workers have their own way of thinking, maybe originally they were not so willing to leave, or there were problems in the family…their mentality is different from ours. After losing their jobs, there must be a feeling of loss and emptiness. Maybe they volunteered at first, but then they were not so willing to be retrenched. Then, there were lay-offs and non-payment; they might have accepted retrenchment under those circumstances. I think you should interview these retrenched workers. If I were laid off and took part in the demonstrations every day, my way of thinking might be different. I have not participated because it doesn’t have much to do with me.

I also called the Xinjiang Kelamayi Oilfield. An official of the Complaints Office said, in Xinjiang Autonomous Region ethnic problems were the most prominent issues. But he said that retrenched workers here received very little money, and some did come to their office because of that.

Official:

So far we haven’t had any demonstrations. So far we haven’t had any workers gathering like workers in Daqing do, surrounding and storming the office building. People here only received quite a small amount of money and some of them did have objections and demands. We gave a reply to their objections and demands according to the policy, and they haven’t come back to petition again.

Han:

When did this happen?

Official:

At the beginning of last year.

Han:

Did their pay increase after the petition?

Official:

No, it didn’t increase.

Han:

Why do you think that your situation is like this here, but in Daqing they put up such a big fight? Why is there such a big difference in their reactions?

Official:

Because this is Xinjiang, an ethnic minority region, and the circumstances are different. If circumstances are like in Daqing, if they are more similar, maybe you can compare them.

Prompted by this official at the Kelamayi Oilfield, I called the Huabei Oilfield Trade Union. It turned out that, following the Daqing workers’ action, on March 4 and 5 over one thousand retrenched workers surrounded the Huabei Petroleum Administration Bureau and presented demands similar to those in Daqing.

Union:

The day before yesterday the same thing happened here. Monday and Tuesday there were quite a lot of people. A lot of people gathered in front of the office building.

Han:

Was it because they had heard of the demonstrations at Daqing?

Union:

Probably they have contacts there with some old colleagues.

Han:

Roughly how many people were there?

Union:

We are not sure of the exact number yet. Maybe over a thousand, those who got laid off last year and the year before.

Han:

What did they demand?

Union:

I guess it was about the medial insurance.

Han:

What is the problem exactly?

Union:

We had heard the Daqing Administration Bureau did something with the medical insurance after the layoffs…. it was just hearsay. So after they heard this, in their own interest, they brought it up with the administration that they wanted to have their medical insurance worked out. Now the laid-off workers made this demand; it is hard to say if it is reasonable or not.

Han:

How many people have been retrenched here?

Union:

Roughly 33,000 workers.

Han:

Roughly, what is their age?

Union:

50, 40, 30, over 20, all ages. People who are concerned about the problem of medical insurance are older, over 50. Once you reach a certain age, health problems multiply, so you will be more concerned with the medical insurance. But even the younger ones will also have health problems soon if they cannot find a job after being laid off.

Han:

The workers in Daqing organised a “Daqing PAB Retrenched Workers’ Provisional Union”. Do workers here have something like that?

Union:

We haven’t heard of this yet. We don’t know if there really is one. There is the All-China Federation of Trade Unions. If you want to establish another labour union, it is certainly against the law. From a legal point of view, it is certainly illegal.

Han:

So here things have quietened down. Do you think it is only temporary or will they never take action again?

Union:

Difficult to tell. The problems have not been solved.

Han:

Daqing workers are a banner for Chinese workers. If this banner holds firm, wouldn't people say here that the problems have not been solved and there’ll be another chance to come out for action?

Union:

In the long run, this certainly will happen again. It is impossible to completely clear up the problems between workers and the enterprise. Offspring are still employed by the enterprise; there are others in the family working for the enterprise; they live in a community run by the enterprise. A future housing reform or other things will all involve their own well-being and interests. There are a whole series of problems involved here.

I also called the Shengli Oilfield Complaints Office. The official who took my call said that although everything looked stable for the time being, when workers in Daqing stirred up [such a big event], the problem of retrenched workers might become a destabilising factor here too.

Official:

Some recently retrenched workers petitioned here before the Chinese New Year.

Han:

Before the Chinese New Year?

Official:

Yes, because of the Chinese New Year bonus. Since they have no connection with the enterprise, the enterprise did not pay them a bonus. That was the problem.

Han:

Was the problem solved?

Official:

No. According to the policies, there shouldn’t be any bonuses paid.

Han:

How many retrenched workers do you have there?

Official:

There are over 10,000. The communication is so well developed now; the news of Daqing can get here very fast. Now it is stable here. But who knows what will happen when the news of Daqinq get here.

Han:

Do you mean that potentially there is a problem because of Daqing?

Official:

Yes. It is hard to tell what these present factors will become, given what happened in Daqing.

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