Ruan Libing, Who Sued the Factory after Losing His Hand in a Workplace Accident. Hunan Province, February 2010. Photo by China Labour Bulletin.

Editors’ Note: Ruan Libing, a young worker from Hunan Province, lost his hand in a workplace accident at a machine tool factory in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province, in March 2010. When the insurance company and factory only paid him 110,000 yuan [$16,550] in compensation, Ruan sued the factory in a personal injury suit, one of the first of its kind in China. After fighting a long legal battle and organizing protests against the factory, he ultimately settled with the factory for an additional 130,000 yuan [$19,558] in October 2010. To read Ruan’s whole story, see "Justice for a Crippled Arm: The Case of Ruan Libing."

Faces of Labor. 1995-2011. Photo mosaic by China Labour Bulletin.

Photographer’s Note: A photo mosaic in the form of a worker in a shoe factory in Shenzhen, comprising many faces of Chinese workers in the construction, mining, and manufacturing sectors. These photos, collected over the past 15 years, depict the countless Chinese people who work and live in poor conditions.

Family Workshop. Dongguan, Guangdong Province, March 2011. Photos by China Labour Bulletin.

Photographer’s Note: In small townships on the outskirts of Dongguan, one of the largest export manufacturing centers in China, there are hundreds of family-run workshops that employ a few dozen people each. Workers are paid by the piece, with skilled and industrious workers earning up to ten yuan [$1.5] per hour, or between 2,000-3,000 yuan [$307 – $460] per month. The workshops produce a wide range of small items, including soft toys such as Hello Kitty and Smurf dolls, garments, bags and accessories. Aside from high food prices, education is expensive for children of migrant workers because they are not allowed to attend low-cost local public schools. One such family in Dongguan reports that the school tuition fee for its teenage son is 5,000 yuan [$769] a year.

Family Workshop. Dongguan, Guangdong Province, March 2011. Photos by China Labour Bulletin.