75% of the world’s toys are produced in China. But workers toil for low wages and in conditions that are not always safe. This is the besetting problem of a country that must exploit the working class in order to draw big foreign investments.
Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Bratz dolls are made at a factory in southern China where workers are obliged to toil as many as 94 hours a week. This was denounced by American NGOs China Labor Watch and National Labor Committee that cited several abuses of the law, especially over Christmas and at other times when the demand for toys goes up.
The American firm MGA Entertainment Inc., which produces the dolls, said it was not familiar with the subcontractor named in the report and anyhow, "MGA uses first-rate factories”. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., a chain of shops that is a major retailer of the dolls, is investigating the claims.
Experts say China must continue to disregard the basic rights of workers to keep production costs competitive. China’s Chamber of Commerce claims that the country produces 75% of the world’s toys. In Guangdong alone, there are more than 5,000 of China's 8,000 toy factories. At peak times, they employ around some 1.5 million workers. In 2005, the province accounted for 78% of China's .2 billion of toy exports, a 10% increase from 2004.
China is preferred to other countries where the cost of labour is cheaper because, as pointed out by Tom Debrowski, Mattel's executive vice president of global operations, the country offers a “very well-developed infrastructure, well educated engineers, excellent transport and a business-friendly government”.
But wage increases and power blackouts as well as less availability of manpower are making it less and less attractive for production purposes. Debrowski said: “Wages have gone up, the availability of labour is not as plentiful as before, and power shortages continue to happen.”
Last July, there was a protest by thousands of workers of Merton Co. in southern Guandong, which makes plastic toys for Disney, Mattel, McDonalds and other US firms. According to China Labour Watch, the protesters were paid 72 dollars per month for 11 hours of work for six days per week, without overtime. The minimum wage was increased by 20% in September and is now 88 dollars per month per eight working hours over a 21-day working week.
Chen Huangman, secretary general of the Guangdong toy association, said “there is so much pressure on prices from foreign companies." Li Zhuoming, vice-president of the association, agreed that US buyers demanded prices that were not reasonable, considering growing labour costs: "Wal-Mart in particular puts a lot of pressure on prices, and as they order so much from China, it has a large influence.”
Apo Leung, director of the Asia Monitor Resource Center of Hong Kong (an NGO that monitors work conditions), said the increased cost of labour and the higher standards of occupational safety expected by western companies were causing an “exodus of manufacturing out of Shenzhen to sub-contractors” in other areas where the cost of labour was cheaper. However, other experts said conditions of work in such places were worse and there were fewer controls by foreign buyers.
Debrowski said that wherever production shifted to, “we will come and carry out inspections”.
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