Coca-Cola China claimed it has not violated China's labor law, a move brought about by an undercover report put together by university students who worked for the company in the summer which accused the company of exploiting its workers.
"The claim made by the students is not true, and the company wants to communicate with the students concerning the matter," said the company's North China Public Affairs Director Zhai Mei on late Monday.
Nine students unveiled a 28-page report of their investigation on websites, saying 90 percent of workers in Coca-Cola's bottling factories were treated as short-term dispatched workers, but in fact have work contracts of over two years, some even ten years.
Dispatched workers can be treated less well than ordinary workers, and are not covered by labor insurance, said the report.
The students, from universities in Beijing, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, entered the five bottling factories and four suppliers as part-time workers from this July.
According to the student report, the factories even failed to provide enough food to some dispatched workers but had them work for 330 hours a month at peak seasons.
"We have collected salary cards, labor contracts and audio recordings of talk with the dispatched workers, which will be legal proof," The Beijing News quoted Yang Zhengjun, one of the students, as saying on Tuesday.
Zhai said Coca-Cola had contacted and scrutinized its bottling factories immediately and their findings showed the students' accusation to be untrue. Dispatched workers only accounted for 43 percent of the total workforce, he said.
Student Wang Wei from Zhejiang University said the 90 percent refers to workers on the production line, and quoted from a bottling worker that "all are dispatched workers except for managers and those sitting in the office".
The company declaration from Zhai said the company and its bottling factories strictly abide by the country's labor law and regulations.
(Xinhua News Agency December 16, 2008)