Danwei Picks is a daily digest of the “From the Web” links found on the Danwei homepage. A feed for the links as they are posted throughout the day is available at Feedsky (in China) or Feedburner (outside China).
The factory worker’s blog: ESWN translates an account in Southern Metropolis Daily of a factory worker in Guangzhou who blogs about the real conditions in his factory:
The Zhenghui Clothing Factory is located in Xinhuo village, Sandong Avenue, Huadu district, Guangzhou city. According to the worker named Ah Guo, the company distributed a "VG Company investigative questionnaire" to the workers more than two months ago. There were ten questions with answers listed on this sheet. The workers were ordered to memorize these answers. On payday, the people from the Finance Department and Human Resources Department would go down to the factory floor and quiz the workers. When a worker provides an incorrect answer, his pay would be withheld until he memorizes the answers and passes a re-test. Basically, the workers will not be paid until they get all the answers right. December 5 was payday but many workers have still not gotten their October pay because they gave the wrong answers.
The truth is more endangered than tigers in China: China Digital Time recaps some of the responses to "Tigergate" including a translation of a Caijing magazine commentary piece.
The spokesperson said the State Forestry Administration (SFA) would not "go beyond its position" to evaluate authenticity of these photos. At the end of the press conference, the deputy director of the State Forestry Administration (SFA), Zhu Lieke said: "There are a lot of photographs of the Loch Ness Monster in the museum. People care about the existence of the monster rather than the authenticity of the photos." This response again generated furious criticism from netizens. In one online survey, participated in by 71,000 Internet users, 90% of participants were not satisfied with the government’s response.
On December 8th, CCTV’s News Investigation program had a full hour program entitled: "Questions on the Photos of the Huanan Tiger." The anchor Chai Jing (柴静) interviewed all related parties and her sharp questions and investigation further revealed the inconsistencies in Zhou Zhenglong’s and local officials’ denials and obscuring of the truth.
CDT’s Fan Linjun translated the following article, by Wang Heyan, from Caijing Magazine on December 11, 2007, which illustrates that the significance of this "Tigergate" event has gone beyond the authenticity of a group of digital photos. Rather, it is a reflection of the existing crisis of public trust in China society.
Danone retreats, Wahaha union attacks: Forbes.com reports on the latest installment in the long running Danone – Wahaha sopa opera:
The trade union representing workers at Hangzhou Wahaha Group has filed a lawsuit against joint venture partner Groupe Danone, claiming that Wahaha’s interests have been damaged by the French group’s legal actions.
This news comes just after Danone indicated it was willing to retreat:
Speaking on Friday, Danone’s Asia-Pacific president, Emmanuel Faber, said that the company is willing to suspend all legal moves if the Wahaha Group takes ‘concrete action’ that would lead to further negotiations on the dispute.
Diary of Beijing Waitstaff: At The Economic Observer, Michael Martin compares the lives of food-service workers at major chains and small private restaurants:
Service positions at Beijing’s small restaurants are notorious for their paltry wages and hectic, unfeeling workplace. Offering virtually the same salary and benefits, do foreign food chains really offer a superior alternative to the migrant laborers who wait tables for local restauranteers in Beijing? If you stop to ask the waitress behind the counter, you would probably be surprised to find that the hierarchy and mechanical social environment of these international chains often adds psychological stress, and can be linked to the difference in Chinese emphasis on the collective and Western emphasis on individuality.