Migrant workers use internet 'press conferences' to fight for back pay

Migrant workers pursuing bosses for back pay on the mainland have to be creative, given their low odds of success in petitions and lawsuits.

Some have taken to prayer, some have arranged for their children to protest on the streets and - in the latest tactic - some have starred in mock government press conferences, with the videos posted on the internet.

When Quan Wenhua was asked to appear in such a video five months ago to ask her former boss' business partner to come up with her back pay, she did not expect to become famous. All she knew was that it might help her get the 20,000 yuan (HK$24,800) she was owed.

She is one of more than 100 workers who have been waiting for four years to be paid for their part in building a cemetery in Tianjin's Hangu district in 2007 and 2008. Their employer, contractor Hei Jinhe, said he was unable to pay them because he had not received payment from the developers - the local funeral affairs administration and an associated company.

In order to get the money, Hei took a friend's advice and decided to make a video and put it on the internet in the hope of arousing public attention.

When the video finally created an online stir at the beginning of this month - prompting media inquiries - Quan was busy harvesting corn and peanuts in her hometown in Xincai county, Henan .