(Broadcast on September 28, 2002)
In late August, China Labour Bulletin reported on the protest by workers from Yumin Ore Processing Factory [YOPF], a subsidiary of Baiyin Nonferrous Metals Company [BNMC] in the province of Gansu [broadcast on August 23, 2002]. The workers blocked the road demanding the deduction of tuition fees for their kids. On September 26 and 27, workers from YOPF took action again and blocked the road - Yongfeng Street - outside the company building demanding the payment of wage arrears. A listener from Baiyin City called from the sit-in location and described what he witnessed.
Listener:
Now they are blocking this road. It has been blocked for two days. Around fifty to sixty workers are here; the whole factory has sixty-eight workers. They put up posters such as “I want to eat”, “I want to survive”, “I want to work” and “Pay us overdue pension”. They are in big black fonts written on white cloth. They brought their little wooden benches to sit on, kind of sit-ins. Quite a number of bystanders, mainly old retired workers. They brought along their benches as well, to sit on the sides. About seventy to eighty bystanders as I can see.
Han Dongfang [Han]:
Which road are they exactly blocking now?
Listener:
In the road where the office building of BNMC is located [Yongfeng Street]. Yesterday the police came as well, but they didn’t restrain the sit-in. They [the police] just sealed off both ends of the road and vehicles had to pass through on both sides. It seems the car from public security office has arrived. The car of our company [BNMC]’s security office has arrived. But anyway no excesses so far, it is simply sit-ins. Oh, now it seems someone from the company comes to talk to them [the workers].
Han:
What about?
Listener:
Not sure. I am about ten meters from the spot. Let me have a look… that guy is from the office, should be. Look like he is going to tear up the posters, I guess…oh, no, now they are still talking, but I can’t really tell what it is about. I am a bit far away from the spot, somewhat ten meters.
Han:
Do the workers have any representatives?
Listener:
They do. They have four representatives and the company’s security officials even talked to them.
Han:
Is the man from the company still talking to the worker representatives?
Listener:
Right, still talking but I can’t hear.
Han:
How is his attitude like?
Listener:
Not very nice! Hmm…oh, aren’t they asking the representatives to go inside?
Han:
So are they going inside [the office building] now?
Listener:
Yup, walking in. Four of them. Four representatives are all walking inside. One woman is their accountant and there are three other guys.
This listener further told CLB that after the report of the protest of YOPF workers last time, BNMC promised that they would solve the workers’ problems, yet no concrete solution has been offered so far. Therefore the workers blocked the road again to demand the payment of wage arrears for the National Day holiday.
Listener:
No one takes care of it [paying back the workers wage arrears]. If you go to the managers’ office to catch one of those leaders, [the leader would say] “oh, it’s beyond my control” and drive you away. They [the workers] talked to the trade union as well. You know the National Day holiday is approaching and the workers need the money for living. There will be celebrations and vacation but the workers didn’t receive any wages, not a penny in the last nine months. After you reported on the first protest, didn’t they [the leaders] say they would solve it? It ended up they simply sent the name list to [those in charge] and nothing has been heard since then. Thus they [the workers] come again! Now whoever leader they catch, he would just evade; even if you catch the party secretary, he would tell them “Get out! I don’t care if you would have things to eat. Just look for someone else. Don’t bother me.” You could interview Liu Zhongxian. He came with two bodyguards yesterday!
Han:
Why did he need bodyguards?
Listener:
He worried if the workers would cause him troubles. This incident has been brought up on and off since last March and they have been evading it till now. Basically, everyday a couple of workers come to see him.
A staff from BNMC’s Complaints Office confirmed with CLB that after the two-day sit-ins, BNMC agreed to distribute each worker RMB 300 for the National Day holiday and would discuss the rest of the issue with the workers after the holiday.
Staff:
It is now…under discussion, about to be solved. The workers didn't receive any wages for nine months this year and later everyone got RMB 600 and today there is probably a meeting, discussing to distribute each worker RMB 300 before the [National Day] holiday. [The company] will probably figure out how to deal with the workers after the holiday.
Han:
When did they decide to distribute RMB 300 each?
Staff:
Today. This morning they said they would pay them each RMB 300 in the meeting.
Han:
So that RMB 300 is for them to spend during the National Day holiday?
Staff:
Hmm…indeed.
This Complaints Office staff then explained CLB that BNMC had been applying for bankruptcy for its 3 subsidiaries and it would affect more than five thousand workers in total, but the government had not approved it yet.
Staff:
Lots of factories have stopped production. Some put their workers on long-term leave and pay the wages at irregular intervals. In BNMC, it is not only the bigger subsidiaries doing badly, but all in all, lots of factories, mines [are doing badly]. Look at our Copper Smeltery. It has always been sustaining losses and will probably stop production. Mineral resources have run out in our mines. We have applied for bankruptcy for nearly two years, but the government doesn’t approve it. They [government officials] said it had to wait till the Sixteenth National Congress of the Communist Party of China [due to be convened on November 8, 2002 – Ed] to be over, but who knows if they would ever approve it. If it goes through, YOPF will go bankrupt as well and if so, redundancy arrangement will be made according to government policies. But going bankrupt is no ordinary matter. There are more than two thousand workers in the copper mines, three thousand in the Xibei Copper Smeltery and a thousand in YOPF, all together five to six thousand workers. Take us as an example. We haven’t got our full wages in the last few years, only getting 80% a month, more or less, or unpaid for two months in a year…It has been like this for some years.
The caller from the sit-in location also told CLB that in mid-September, more than a thousand laid off workers from Baiyin Weaving Factory, China Nonferrous Metal Company’s Twenty-first Smeltery (CNMC21S) and other work units demonstrated in front of the city government office. Driving tricycles is an important way for laid off workers to make their living, and they were there protesting against the government’s prohibition of tricycles passing through the urban area.
Listener:
The announcement of prohibition was released on September 1, they…the CNMC21S workers all work as tricycle drivers to carry passengers to support themselves, as well as workers from Gansu Baiyin Weaving Factory – both have been shut down. [The laid off workers] all drive the [tricycles] to carry passengers for living. If they are not allowed to pass through the urban area, no passenger is going to take them. Thus, they staged sit-ins by the entrance of the city government office for three whole days. Finally on the third night, some propaganda cars, riot police and cranes from the traffic unit came to broadcast the policy. I went there to have a look on the third day and was told that some motorcycles have been taken away and just now, an old tricycle driver told me that about ten of them had been detained for fifteen days.
Han:
How many workers joined the demonstration?
Listener:
Oh, a lot, more than a thousand.