Social media videos showed large crowds clashing with hazmat-suited officials amid rising worker discontent at the Foxconn plant
Photograph: ReutersPhotograph: ReutersHundreds of workers joined protests at Foxconn‘s huge iPhone plant in China, with some men smashing surveillance cameras and windows, footage uploaded on social media showed.
“Give us our pay!” chanted workers who were surrounded by people in full hazmat suits, some carrying batons, according to footage from one video. Other footage showed teargas being deployed and workers taking down quarantine barriers. Some workers had complained they were forced to share dormitories with colleagues who had tested positive for Covid-19.
A source familiar with the situation in Zhengzhou said production at the plant was unaffected by the worker unrest and output remained normal. A second source familiar with the matter, however, said Foxconn was unlikely to hit the target, pointing to disruptions triggered by the unrest, particularly affecting new recruits who were hired to bridge the gap in the workforce.
Former workers have estimated that thousands fled the factory campus. Before the unrest, the Zhengzhou plant employed about 200,000 people. To retain staff and lure more workersLocal authorities also stepped in to help, with some urging retired soldiers and government workers to take on stints, according to local media reports.
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