The “Rights Awakening” of Chinese Migrant Workers: Beyond the Generational Perspective

Abstract

In the spring of 2010, the strike of the Honda workers in Nanhai instigated an on-going discourse on the “rights awakening” of the “new generation of migrant workers.” Since then, much has been written about these young workers, generally described as more pro-active and ready to stand up against their employers than the older and more subservient generation. Drawing from statistical findings from two factory-gate surveys in the metal mechanics and garment sectors in Shenzhen, this paper tests two hypotheses: (a) that workers of the younger generation are more cognizant of their legal rights than older workers; (b) that the younger generation wants to work fewer hours and to enjoy life more. We argue that this popular image of the younger generation of migrant workers is one-dimensional and reductive, as it focuses only on generational differences as an explanatory factor for worker activism, while ignoring other issues such as types of industries and payment systems. In this paper, we purport that these elements play important roles in shaping the attitude of this younger generation toward their work and rights

The Relationship between Labour NGOs and Chinese Workers in an Authoritarian Regime

“…The Walmart case is yet another piece of evidence that Chinese migrant workers are increasingly willing to confront employers. As reflected in the 20 000 Walmart store workers who participated in the WCWA chat rooms, the consciousness of some of the migrant workers in China has risen (Franceschini, Siu and Chan, 2016). The reasons for this growing awareness are multiple -demographic (an aging workforce), technological (IT revolution; cell phones), personal development (through accumulated experience), and legalistic (increasingly litigious) -nourishing labour agency in a process of maturation.…”

Exploring the Interactions of Factory Workers in China: A Model Development Using the Grounded Theory Approach

“…In addition, most studies in this area only focus on the character and behavior of Chinese factory workers. Additionally, existing studies examining the mode, content, and depth of EEI may not be fully applicable to the context of FWI, because Chinese factory workers face longer working hours, higher work intensity [75], lower salaries [18], and have lower overall education levels [16] than average professions. Further, although there has been limited study of the interaction between Chinese factory workers in large-scale factories [2], the literature has not yet considered the case of workers in Chinese SME factories.…”

At the Roots of Labour Activism: Chinese and Cambodian Garment Workers in Comparative Perspective

“…Still, overtime was not considered a problem per se, as it was perceived as the only viable way to increase an otherwise meagre salary. When asked whether they would still have been willing to work overtime in a situation in which their salary was enough to cover their life expenses, 51.4% of the Chinese workers said yes, compared to 90.7% of the Cambodian workers, a disparity which might be related to differences in the payment system, with the majority of the workers in China (90.8%) paid by piece-rate -a much more exhausting arrangement than time rate -and 72.8% of the Cambodian workers by time rate (on the difference between time rate and piece rate, see Franceschini, Siu, and Chan 2016). The second column in the figures shows the basic monthly wage that the factories guarantee to workers regardless of the effective workload.…”