A workers’ riot at a Foxconn Technologies factory in China has stopped production at the facility, which supplies many of the world’s major tech companies, including Apple.
Police were reportedly sent in to the factory in the central Chinese city of Taiyuan after a riot broke out Sunday, leaving an unknown number of workers hospitalized or detained by police. The plant was closed as of Monday.
Foxconn issued a statement saying that more than 1,000 workers allegedly rioted after police arrived to subdue an earlier, smaller fracas between workers and security guards. The plant employs 79,000 people, and Foxconn employs more than 1 million people in China.
China’s state-run news media has reported that 5,000 police officers were called in to quell rioters who destroyed guard booths and other propety. Foxconn has stated that no “production facilities or equipment has been affected.”
The Taiyuan factory made headlines earlier this year when NPR’s “This American Life” reported inhumane work conditions at the factory. While most of those claims were later proved false other news media have found a factual basis for some statements.
Labor unrest has become more common in China of late. At least some worker protests have revolved around wage disputes and unpaid salaries. American Public Media’s Marketplace China correspondent Rob Schmitz reported that because Foxconn is a Taiwanese company run by non-Chinese, the results of the police investigation will be published in China’s state press.
Below are two videos published late last night, alledgely of the Foxconn riot, although its authenticity has yet to be proven. In the first video, workers chant and yell as police arrive.
Lead image via Wikimedia Commons
