Conflict between workers at<br>Foxconn Czech plant

According to reports the Czech workers petitioning the management about the low hygienic standards of colleagues who have arrived from Eastern and Southern Europe. According to a Slovak employee, Slovaks are not in general the target for the Czech workers’ anger. Most compliance to the management are against the Bulgarians and Romanians workers. According to the Slovak employee a hotel located near the plant serves as a housing facility for Foxconn workers supplied by employment agencies. In the hotel often conflicts, physical and otherwise, breaks out between different groups of employees. He also explained that fights frequently take place between the workers in the hotel. “Last week, four Polish men fought against 10 Romanians and two weeks ago this Romanian guy was found on the ground with his throat cut.” he explaned. Now the Czech police is investigating this matter. He also explained that 30 people must share one shower, one toilet and one kitchen with a two-burner stove, CBW reports. In the Czech Republic Foxconn is one of the biggest manufacturing companies. The company has augmented its work force of approximately 5,000 employees. More then 1000 employees are coming from Ukraine, Slovakia, Vietnam, Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Bulgaria and Romania. They where hired by personnel agencies such as Xawax group and SK Expres. “Apart from the inconveniences stemming from the different hygienic standards of the nationalities, there are also factual problems that the workers have to face,” Foxconn union leader Jaroslav Mariel explains to CBW. According to Martin Němec Foxconn manufacturing manager the company is solving the escalating situation. It seems that the main factor might be wage differences. A worker who came to Foxconn two years ago from SK Start agency, said his net hourly had risen from Kč 55 (€2.07) to Kč 75. He also explained that some colleagues on direct contracts in his section are only earning Kč 72 per hour before tax. Several personnel agencies that CBW tried to contact did not wanted to give any comments.