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Strike cripples Apple screenmaker in China

More money, less paralysis and death wanted

Workers at the factory making screens for Apple - not to mention Nokia and just about everyone else - are striking for promised bonuses and fewer toxic chemicals.

The strike, which the China Daily reports involves around 2,000 of the 10,000 workers at the factory, is in protest at the suspension of promised bonuses. It is also in protest at the company's use of n-hexane, which workers blame for deaths and paralysis of their colleagues - though the company now claims that the chemical is being phased out and bonuses will be paid.

The protest got pretty violent, with stones being thrown and roads blocked outside the United Win (China) Technology, a subsidiary of WinTek which makes touchscreens for Apple as well as most of the rest of the industry. Engadget has pictures of the protest outside the factory.

Workers are reportedly unhappy at local government investigations, and company assurances, that deaths were from natural causes; though reports that the manufacturer isn't planning to use n-hexane any more have gone some way to placating workers.

There are also reports that promised bonuses will be paid, which should see workers back at the factory, though it remains to be seen if the interruption will have any impact on shipments. ®

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