Clothing and 62,471 yuan (US$7,526) have been distributed among poverty-stricken workers in Zhangjiakou, a city in Hebei, a neighboring province of Beijing.
The donations were collected by the All-China Federation of Trade Unions, which has done this for a decade. Hundreds of thousands needy workers across the country have benefited from the program.
In addition, local hot lines for workers in trouble will be open on Saturday to make it possible for them to have help during the Spring Festival, Chinese lunar New Year, which is next Tuesday.
In a recently issued notice, the Unions asked their local branches to record phone calls which ask for help and to deal withthem promptly.
(Xinhua News Agency February 8, 2002)
