On September 3, at Deya Senior High School in Jingyuan County, Baiyin, Gansu, a student named Song Chengcheng, who had long been subjected to bullying by dormitory roommates, was beaten to death at school after just 20 days of enrollment. After the incident, the family sought an explanation from the school but to no avail, and all related information posted online was deleted. (Compiled from submissions)
[Strike by Over a Thousand Workers at Hong Kong-Invested Appliance Factory in Shenzhen Over Unpaid Wages]
On September 5, more than a thousand workers at Shenzhen Yintu Electric Co., Ltd. went on strike to protest the company’s failure to pay wages and social insurance. That afternoon, the company reached an agreement with the workers, and the strike ended.
Subsequently, Yintu issued a statement saying that unstable overseas orders had led to financial difficulties, forcing it to delay wage payments. According to the agreement, Yintu will pay the delayed wages for July on September 15, but made no mention of the already overdue August wages or social insurance.
Public records show that Yintu Electric (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd. is a subsidiary of Hong Kong Yintu Industrial Co., Ltd., established in 1987, with a peak workforce of around 4,000 employees.
A fine arts and calligraphy training institution, Jin Yihui, located inside Aeon Mall in Wuzhong District, Suzhou, Jiangsu, recently absconded with funds. On September 6, hundreds of parents gathered at Aeon Mall demanding refunds.
On the evening of September 3, in Qingshan District, Wuhan, Hubei, the local government forcibly demolished the Industrial Fourth Road Hardware and Electrical Market, deploying a large number of government personnel, police, and security guards, even though the merchants’ contracts had not expired and no compensation had been provided to them.
On September 4, at the Qingyuan Education Bureau in Guangdong, students defending their rights played poker to pass the time. According to the parents of these students, they had moved into Shatian Village in Qingyuan 25 years ago, and their children had always been treated the same as the local children of Shatian Village, studying together at Shatian Primary School. However, after this year’s transition to middle school, the children of Shatian Village were able to attend the nearby Songgang Middle School, while their children, because they hold rural household registrations from outside the area, were assigned to a school 50 kilometers away.
Between September 3 and 4, three incidents of petitioners being intercepted took place on the streets of Beijing, two of which involved the participation of police officers.
“Mass Closures of Rural Schools in Five Southern Provinces Force ‘Left-Behind Children’ to Become Petitioners” September is normally the start of the new school term in China. But in rural areas across Guangdong and four other southern provinces, many “left-behind children” now face the predicament of having no school to attend. They have been forced onto the streets to demand their basic right to education—young primary school students, once innocent and carefree, are now compelled to become “petitioners” and “rights defenders.” On September 2, at the gate of the Xiapozi branch of Xialu Primary School in Hengshan Town, Lianjiang, Guangdong, a group of children gathered and shouted “I want to go to school!” in protest at the school’s closure. Similar scenes have recently been repeated outside fourteen rural schools in Guangdong, Yunnan, Guizhou, Guangxi, and Fujian. Some children have even followed their parents to local government or education bureaus to seek redress, experiencing hardship at an age when they should only be focused on learning. In recent years, as China’s birth rate has continued to decline, rural primary schools have faced a severe drop in enrollment. Under the banner of “optimizing resource allocation,” education authorities have carried out large-scale school mergers, transferring students to bigger but more distant schools. Officially, this is framed as a reasonable educational reform. But for rural left-behind children—most of whom are raised by elderly grandparents while their parents work far away—it has made them the victims of policy. With neighborhood schools shuttered, these children must now walk several kilometers to reach more distant schools. Local governments have not provided school bus services, which not only heightens traffic safety risks for the children but also places a heavy burden on their elderly caretakers. Ironically, even if migrant workers bring their children to the cities, they face another set of challenges. Urban schooling usually requires home ownership, yet soaring housing prices put this out of reach for most rural families. Even when parents manage to buy property, their rural household registration often exposes their children to discrimination in the urban education system. Difficulties in accessing education in the countryside, coupled with barriers in the cities, mean that some children risk dropping out altogether. To defend their children’s right to education, many parents have posted protest videos and articles on social media seeking help. Yet these legitimate appeals, which deserve public attention, are often swiftly censored or deleted. This “invisible” struggle has left many parents in despair. In the logic of school mergers, children are reduced to mere numbers in a spreadsheet; the survival of a school is measured only in terms of cost and efficiency. But for rural families, those classrooms are the sole hope for their children’s education. Today, with large numbers of left-behind children standing at school gates shouting “I want to go to school,” the scene not only reveals the deep imbalance in educational resources, but also shows how, beneath the urban-rural divide and systemic barriers, the most vulnerable are forced to bear heavy costs from early childhood.
Schools closed and triggering protests include: •Xianrendong Primary School, Xianrendong Village, Shenzhen Town, Gaozhou, Guangdong •Tanggong Village Primary School, Heliao Town, Lianjiang, Guangdong •Xiapozi Branch, Xialu Primary School, Hengshan Town, Lianjiang, Guangdong •Huangzhujian Primary School, Qingping Town, Lianjiang, Guangdong •Yilutang Primary School, Xinmin Town, Lianjiang, Guangdong •Hengdong Primary School, Luoping Town, Luoding, Guangdong •Huangjiaping Primary School, Zhaxi Town, Weixin County, Zhaotong, Yunnan •Shucao Primary School, Shucaoping Village, Luowang Miao Township, Yiliang County, Zhaotong, Yunnan •Dashuijing Primary School, Luokan Town, Zhenxiong County, Zhaotong, Yunnan •Huilong Primary School, Piaojing Town, Dafang County, Bijie, Guizhou •Niuchang Primary School, Mashan Town, Wangmo, Guizhou •Sixian Branch, Xindi Town, Longxu District, Wuzhou, Guangxi •Wenjing Village Primary School, Zhongxian Township, Youxi County, Sanming, Fujian
On September 3 in Beijing, just 3.3 kilometers away from Tiananmen, the site of the CCP’s “9.3” military parade, the State Bureau for Letters and Calls was still packed with crowds
“22 Strikes in 33 Days: Manufacturing Workers’ Strikes Under the Double Pressure of Economic Downturn and ‘Mandatory Social Insurance’”
Over the past month, China’s manufacturing industry has witnessed a wave of consecutive workers’ strikes. On factory floors, assembly lines, and in industrial parks, scenes of collective walkouts and labor protests have repeatedly unfolded.
Behind this strike wave lie two major pressures: plummeting orders caused by the economic downturn, and surging operating costs driven by the rollout of the “mandatory social insurance” policy, which has placed enormous burdens on small- and medium-sized enterprises. These pressures have already pushed many companies into bankruptcy. Of the 22 labor disputes we tracked, nine factories have already declared bankruptcy, while the rest are under immense financial strain. Yet the consequences are not borne by businesses alone. For ordinary workers, the costs are shifted down onto them, resulting in wage cuts, unpaid wages, uncompensated layoffs, and uncompensated relocations.
According to Yesterday Channel’s statistics, from August 1 to September 2, 2025 — just 33 days — there were 22 collective labor actions across China’s manufacturing sector. These cases spanned pharmaceuticals, textiles, aerospace, packaging, auto parts, and semiconductors. They not only highlight the intensifying conflicts between labor and management but also reveal the precarious situation manufacturing workers now face.
The 22 incidents are as follows:
Aug 1 – Workers at Fengyuan Shoe Factory, Daoxian County, Yongzhou, Hunan, went on strike demanding higher wages, as their monthly pay was only RMB 1,500.
Aug 1 – Workers at Zhongguangdian Communications Technology Co., Ltd., Heyuan, Guangdong, struck to protest relocation without compensation and unpaid wages. The factory had already moved to Jiangxi in April, and management withheld wages to force unwilling workers to quit.
Aug 6–7 – Dozens of laid-off employees at Guoyao Lerentang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. protested for severance. Although the company promised in writing on June 1 to resolve compensation, a month later it reneged and even forced long-serving employees to “prove their work years.”
Aug 7 & 9 – Over 100 workers at Yiji Garment Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Qingyuan, Guangdong, went on strike after the company unilaterally slashed wages by 40%. Workers said the cut made survival impossible.
Aug 8–11 – Around 200 workers at Guangzhou Kaiyi Paper Packaging Co., Ltd. protested for several days to demand unpaid wages. On Aug 8, the company suddenly declared bankruptcy and the owner disappeared. With profits of only RMB 150,000–240,000 per month, the firm could not withstand the extra RMB 500,000 monthly cost of the upcoming September social insurance requirements, leading to a cash flow collapse.
Aug 8 – Hundreds of workers at Shanghai Guoli Automotive Leather Interiors Co., Ltd. protested again, demanding fairer severance pay. The proposed compensation was “RMB 2,740 per year of service,” which workers called “the lowest in Shanghai.” The company had already faced protests last November for unpaid wages and disguised layoffs, during which several workers were arrested.
Aug 11–13 – Employees at Leisong Technology Co., Ltd., Guangming District, Shenzhen, Guangdong, went on a three-day strike demanding compensation for relocation to Huizhou. Workers said equipment was being moved secretly, but no commitment on compensation was given.
Aug 11–14 – After Shenzhen Advanced Semiconductor Equipment Co., Ltd. dissolved, nearly 1,000 employees held four days of protests, eventually winning “N + 3 + RMB 3,000” compensation.
Aug 11 – Idle employees of Chongqing Beida Pharmaceutical protested the company’s demand that workers idled for seven years undergo retraining. Workers believed this was a ploy to force them to quit, and the company never clarified job positions, nature, location, or pay.
Aug 12 – Over 1,000 workers at Aerospace Zhenbang Precision Machinery Co., Ltd., Gu’an County, Langfang, Hebei, went on strike over months of unpaid wages. Founded in 2010, the company employs 1,500 workers and supplies major projects such as Shenzhou manned spacecraft and the BeiDou satellite system.
Aug 14–15 – Workers at Shenzhen Huaren Beverage Co., Ltd., Guangdong (a subsidiary of state-owned China Resources, best known for its “C’estbon” bottled water brand), went on strike to protest relocation without compensation.
Aug 20–21 – BYD workers at Suqiao, Guilin, Guangxi, went on strike demanding enforcement of Guilin City’s minimum wage of RMB 2,200. BYD insisted on applying the RMB 1,870 standard for Yongfu County. With government intervention, the strike failed.
Aug 21 – 2,000 workers at Maorui Electronics Factory, Dongguan, Guangdong, went on strike over uncompensated relocation. Workers said the company was moving operations from Niushan to Qingxi, but refused compensation while secretly relocating equipment.
Aug 23–25 – After Yigao Garment Factory, Xintang Town, Zengcheng District, Guangzhou, collapsed, workers protested for three days demanding owed wages.
Aug 27 – At Minghao Electronics’ Yilu branch, Guanyun County, Jiangsu, workers were told of another two-month suspension after already being off work for two months, with no allowance. Unlike its other two branches, Yilu workers had no social insurance. After the labor bureau required coverage, the employer extended suspension to avoid costs and compensation. Workers’ appeals to the county government went unanswered.
Aug 28–29 – Workers at Qisi Intelligent Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Zhuhai, Guangdong, protested the company’s three-month “vacation,” meant to avoid relocation compensation after moving operations to Dongguan.
Aug 27–Sep 1 – After Dingliang Fire Technology Co., Ltd., Shandong, collapsed, 700 workers guarded the factory gates for six days demanding four months of unpaid wages.
Aug 30–Sep 1 – After Jiali Garment Co., Ltd., Lianyuan, Hunan, collapsed, workers protested for three days demanding compensation.
Sep 1 – Hundreds of workers at Xinde Industrial Weaving Co., Ltd., Jiangxi, struck over four months of unpaid wages.
Sep 2 – Workers at Xinjinglong Paper Mill, Hengshan County, Hunan, protested six months of unpaid wages. The plant has already gone bankrupt.
Sep 2 – After Andaoer Technology Co., Ltd., Dongguan, Guangdong, collapsed, workers protested for owed wages.
Sep 2 – Hundreds of workers at Hong Kong-funded Yinte Metal Products Co., Ltd., Foshan, Guangdong, went on strike over pending factory closure and demanded compensation.
These 22 strikes and protests are both isolated incidents and collective echoes of a shared predicament. For workers, strikes are not radical acts of confrontation, but the last resort when all options are exhausted. Through these repeated collective actions, workers have demonstrated stronger solidarity and awareness of their rights. It is foreseeable that this wave of grassroots labor actions will continue in the coming period.
On September 2, in Foshan, Guangdong, the Hong Kong–funded Yinte Metal Products Co., Ltd. faced closure. Hundreds of workers went on strike demanding compensation.
