“You'll Be Fired if You Refuse” - Human Rights Watch

Physical Abuse by Chinese Supervisors
Workers often mentioned difficult working relations with the Chinese managers. At times,
this was simply due to a language barrier, but other times it reached the level of verbal and
even physical abuse. Most workers said that physical abuse had declined considerably in
recent years. And unlike low safety standards and long hours, it does not appear to be a
deliberate part of the Chinese-led working environment, but rather a long-standing
practice continued by a few Chinese managers.
An underground miner at NFCA told Human Rights Watch about an incident in late 2010
when he was slapped and then threatened with termination should he report the incident:
I was underground, and we didn’t have industrial water to go ahead. It
would have been too dangerous, because we didn’t have the necessary
water for the machines. The Chinese boss came and he said, “Why are you
not drilling?” We told him why, and he hit me, he slapped me across the
face. Later he told me that if I reported him, I would lose my job….
That was the only time [physical abuse] happened to me, but I’ve seen it
happen to others in my work group, and we know there’s no reason to
report. A friend of mine was hit by the Chinese boss with a hammer because
he said my friend should have done more work. My friend brought a
complaint, but nothing happened to the Chinese guy and when my friend’s
contract came up, he was let go. Everyone knew why. 235
Other workers described being slapped, hit, and kicked by their Chinese bosses, or having
rocks, hard hats, or other equipment thrown at them. 236 Most miners said that they did not
report the incident, either because of fear for being fired or because they were paid a small
bribe to not report. A nurse at the Chinese-run Sino-Zam Friendship Hospital described
several cases she had seen, as well as the reluctance to report:
Yesterday [in November 2010] there were two cases that came in from
severe beatings by the Chinese bosses. One of the workers was beaten by a
hammer, the other by a shovel. The latter one, the one beaten by a shovel,
235 Human Rights Watch interview with underground boomer operator B at NFCA, Chambishi, November 11, 2010.
236 Human Rights Watch interviews with construction worker A at 15MCC, Chambishi, November 9, 2010; with artisan fitter A
at NFCA, Kitwe, November 15, 2010; with boomer helper at NFCA, Chambishi, November 11, 2010; with acid plant operator B
at CCS, Kitwe, November 7, 2010; and with construction worker B at 15MCC, Chambishi, July 15, 2011.
73 HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH | NOVEMBER 2011