Sichuan Textile Factory Worker Sets Fire in Protest Over Unpaid Wages
"Rumors Spread That Arsonist's Wage Was 150,000 Won... Some Hail Him as a Hero"
Sit-ins Spread to Construction and Home Appliance Sites... Authorities Crack Down
As the Chinese economy continues to struggle, protests over unpaid wages have been occurring across various sectors such as factories, construction sites, schools, and hospitals, according to a report by Radio Free Asia (RFA) on May 23 (local time).
RFA reported, based on related videos posted on social networking services (SNS) and eyewitness accounts, that on May 20, an employee surnamed Yuan at a textile factory in Pingshan County, Yibin City, Sichuan Province, China, set fire to the factory after arguing with the factory manager over unpaid wages. The fire was extinguished after approximately 37 hours, and the property damage was estimated to reach several tens of millions of yuan.
Regarding the arson incident at a textile factory in Pingshan County, Sichuan Province, China, which occurred on the 20th, internet videos and artificial intelligence (AI) images mentioning the wage arrears issue of the factory employee who committed the arson. Yonhap News Agency
Rumors circulated online that Yuan had not received 800 yuan (about 150,000 won) in wages. Netizens expressed sympathy for the difficult situation faced by workers, questioning whether the monthly wage was only 800 yuan, and some even called Yuan "Brother 800" (800 Ge), treating him as a hero.
In response, the Pingshan County authorities acknowledged that the fire at the factory was caused by Yuan's arson, but dismissed the rumors, stating that Yuan's March salary exceeded 4,000 yuan (about 760,000 won). The authorities also announced that Yuan had expressed his intention to resign at the end of last month and received a final settlement of 5,370 yuan (about 1,020,000 won) on May 15. They added that three individuals who spread false information about the case had been apprehended, investigated, and subjected to detention and fines.
RFA noted that this arson incident occurred amid a wave of protests over unpaid wages in various parts of China in recent days.
On May 22, employees at the Xieweijia office, a home appliance cleaning service for Midea in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, staged a sit-in for nine hours demanding overdue wages. On May 19, a video was posted on SNS showing workers at a civil engineering site for the Yangxin Expressway, managed by China Railway Seventh Group, a subsidiary of China Railway Group, demanding payment of overdue wages.
In addition, since May 16, more than 30 construction workers have been staging a sit-in in front of the Guangxi Songbian Power Transmission Construction Company building in Nanning, Guangxi Province, demanding long-overdue wages.
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