The government of south China's Guangdong Province, which is home to the
greatest number of companies and migrant workers of any province in
the country, has launched a two-month campaign against the illegal
use of labor.
Conducted jointly by eight departments, including those for
labor, work safety, public security and health, and the provincial
federation of trade unions, the campaign will target small
workshops, brick kilns and mines, it said at a press conference on
Tuesday.
As part of a national campaign, it will scrutinize sites for
possible abducted migrant workers, child labor, restrictions of
personal freedom, forced labor and intentional injury.
Yang Shaosen, deputy secretary-general of the provincial
government, pledged an "iron fist" approach against crimes found in
the campaign and encouraged everyone to report illegal practices to
the labor authorities or via the labor hotline.
At the end of last year, Guangdong had 841,000 registered
companies, according to the provincial industry and commerce
administration. At the same time, it was also home to some 18
million migrant workers, or roughly one-third of the nation's
total, the provincial labor department, said.
The illegal use of labor is not uncommon in the province.
In March, for example, a brick factory in the city of Huizhou
was found guilty of using unlawful means to recruit workers,
underpaying its employees and doling out physical punishments. It
was ordered to suspend its operation until such malpractices were
eliminated.
Also, the construction of a new provincial museum was suspended
in November after it was discovered that, among other things,
workers on the site had no contracts with their employer.
In June, labor authorities in Guangdong launched a two-month
campaign against child labor and forced migrant labor.
The illegal use of labor has been at the forefront of people's
attention since the exposure last month of the slave labor scandal
at several brick kilns in north China's Shanxi Province.
Meanwhile, according to the newly adopted labor contract law,
officials will face administrative penalties or criminal
prosecution for abusing their authority or neglecting their
responsibilities that results in serious harm to the interests of
workers.
(China Daily July 6, 2007)