New research goes beyond the New York Times to show just how disturbing labor conditions at Foxconn, the "Chinese hell factory," really are.

CLB translates two Chinese media accounts of labour disputes that give a detailed insight into how China's embryonic collective bargaining process is beginning to develop. Photo by attack the darkeness@flickr.com

During the run-up to the Spring Festival holiday, government and trade union officials were once again prioritizing the resolution of labour disputes, to ensure that migrant workers could return home with at least some of the pay owed to them by employers. In December 2011, at least eight government departments issued notices demanding that employers pay their workers on time, and the national trade union urged local unions to mobilize and prioritize legal assistance for migrant workers in these matters

China said the number of people living in cities exceeded the rural population for the first time, a historic shift that experts said would put a strain on society and the environment. The change marks a turning point for China, which for centuries was a mainly agrarian nation but has witnessed a huge population shift to cities over the past three decades as people seek to benefit from rapid economic growth.

Shenzhen's minimum wage will rise from next month, ending a one-month delay to the increase rather than a year-long grace period that angry Hong Kong manufacturers had asked the municipal authorities for in December.

The Beijing municipal government increased the capital’s minimum wage by 8.6 percent on 1 January this year, and the Shenzhen government has announced it will increase its minimum wage to 1,500 yuan a month on 1 February, making it once again the highest minimum wage in China.

Less than two years after the worker suicides at electronics giant Foxconn and a strike at Honda (HMC) suppliers in Guangdong province, labor troubles are again roiling China.

A Shenzhen, ville chinoise où des centaines de milliers de salariés fabriquent des produits électroniques, les grèves se multiplient. Si elles font moins de bruit, c'est qu'elles touchent des usines moins médiatiques

China's manufacturing heartland has been hit by large-scale strikes in recent weeks, as an increasingly demanding workforce faces off with employers struggling with high costs and falling exports.

As Wind Mobile considered bids for $30 million in contracts to expand its wireless network in Canada, one of the competing companies put in a peculiar request. Wind CEO Anthony Lacavera was talking to world-beating network equipment stalwarts like Ericsson and Nokia Siemens when the Chinese firm Huawei asked if it could rent office space at Wind’s headquarters on Toronto’s waterfront.