While police dispute the story, Chinese netizens express sympathy for “800 Brother” over how workers are treated.

A Chinese factory employee set fire to a textile plant in China’s southwestern Sichuan province in his frustration over unpaid wages of just 800 yuan (or US$111), according to videos posted on social media and eyewitness accounts shared with Radio Free Asia.

  • rockerface 🇺🇦@lemm.eeEnglish
    141·
    7 hours ago

    From the article:

    Police, however, said the claim that “800 yuan in wages were owed” was false, and that the company was in the process of approving payment of 5,370 yuan in wages. It blamed the factory fire on the arsonist’s suicidal thoughts, and said police would deal strictly with those spreading rumors.

    So the “official channels” would just tell him unpaid wages don’t exist

    • queermunist she/her@lemmy.mlEnglish
      48·
      7 hours ago

      What about the ACFTU? Or one of the labour inspectorates? Going to police is the first step, but it’s hardly the only official channel.

      The education system clearly failed to prepare this worker for what they should do if their boss steals their wages, but there were definitely other options besides going all propaganda of the deed on the factory. I certainly sympathize with them though!