https://hklabourrights.org/news/behind-byds-billion-dollar-boom-the-harsh-reality-of-worker-exploitation/

The means of production was it? Mao would be rolling in his grave.

early 2024, mass worker strikes erupted in the company’s factories in Wuxi and Chengdu, China. Thousands protested pay cuts and reduced benefits following BYD’s acquisition of Green Point, a manufacturing firm previously owned by Jabil. Despite promises to maintain existing wages and benefits for 18 months, BYD implemented a five-day, 8-hour work schedule in early 2024, causing workers’ monthly income to plummet from 5,000–6,800 yuan to as low as 3,000–4,000 yuan—barely above China’s minimum wage. As many rely on overtime to survive, workers allege that the move was a tactic to push them to resign voluntarily and avoid severance payouts.

The strikes quickly spread from Wuxi to Chengdu. Chinese authorities responded with a heavy hand: police detained some protesters, reflecting the harsh reality of labour rights activism in mainland China. Although BYD attempted to placate workers with holiday overtime compensation, unrest continues to simmer across its facilities.