As the photographs demonstrate, the protests have been met with a heavy police presence. Workers can be seen wearing orange and blue worksuits, blocking the street outside the factory, while police are equipped with riot shields and truncheons.

One worker named Liu told China Labor Watch that a number of workers were struck by cars pushing their way through the crowd during a particularly tense moment, while others were allegedly attacked by police dogs. Liu also said that Stella management told workers that it would only pay into the housing fund for employees who have purchased or are renting in Dongguan, contrary to government guidelines.

A long-time manufacturing base, Dongguan has seen its share of labor strife. Last year’s Yue Yuan shoe factory strike saw up to 15,000 workers go on strike. The government eventually ordered Yue Yuan to pay tens of millions of yuan in unpaid housing and social insurance payments to 48,000 of its employees.

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With Christmas only a month away, it might be worth considering how many of the toys under the Christmas Tree this year were made. It turns out many popular toys manufactured in China including Optimus Prime, Mickey Mouse, and Barbie are among those made by workers who have had their rights taken away, according to China Labor Watch (CLW).

The independent labor watchdog released a 66 page report in which it detailed 20 labor violations committed by four Guangdong toy factories that manufacture toys for companies like Hasbro, Disney, Crayola, Mattel and Fisher-Price .

Through undercover probes and interviews with factory workers, the report accuses the factories of numerous labor violations including unpaid wages and overtime, poor workplace safety, hiring discrimination, abusive management, non-existent labor contracts, and lack of union representation.

CLW said no progress has been made since a similar report in 2007 which contained many of the same violations.

CLW points to the relationship toy companies have with their Chinese suppliers that puts toy factories and their workers at a disadvantage. This relationship is also said to absolve toy companies of any responsibility should something go wrong, even allowing them to appear to side with workers that have had their rights violated.

Photo: hc360

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In a statement, Foxconn said that the man, identified as Mr. Kang, took his own life during his down time and the company pledged to do whatever it could for the family and to assist the police in any further investigation.

The 22 year-old died instantly after jumping from the seventh floor at the Baiming Garden dormitory in Longhua New Zone at around 4 p.m. Baiming Garden is not one of the dormitories provided by Foxconn, but an optional living complex for staff.

According to Kang’s sister, he is from Loudi in Hunan Province and came to Foxconn three years ago to be an assembly line worker. “He was a happy and outgoing person. We never saw such a thing happening to him,” she told media. Some people tried to take to his QQ homepage to pay their respects or get some information about Kang’s final days but it is entirely blocked.

The string of suicides at Foxconn saw 18 attempted suicides with fourteen deaths between January and November 2010 drew headlines worldwide. The subsequent scrutiny led to improvements at the company, including installing nets at some locations to catch would-be jumpers.

Foxconn is a global manufacturer for several well-known brands, including Apple, Samsung, and other technology companies.

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