Human Rights Watch - Labor Rights - China - Business

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Corporate Sponsors of the 2008 Olympics

Corporate Partners of the International Olympic Committee

Human Rights and the 2008 Olympics in Beijing

Business and Labor Rights

The Olympics can be a boon for the host country: The games spark rapid national development and international investment. They bring global attention to the country, inspiring—or so the idea runs—a tourism boom. Businesses that sponsor the Olympics benefit by being linked with the prestigious international event.

But in China this rosy picture is tainted by the restrictions imposed by Chinese law and policy on the rights of Chinese workers, who often work in harsh conditions with little opportunity for redress. China is obligated under international laws it has ratified and as a member of the International Labor Organization to uphold workers’ rights. By 2008, China should reform its national laws and local regulations to comply with international labor rights standards and should effectively enforce them.

China’s national laws prohibit workers from organizing independent unions, and do not explicitly protect the right to strike. Only one organization, the All China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU), can legally represent workers, and its local offices are controlled by local authorities and Communist Party committees.

Many workers also lack minimal health and safety protections and adequate wages. Many are compelled to work long hours. Some contract workers may not even be paid by factories for the work they have done.

Because they lack the right to organize independently, Chinese workers also lack effective ways to resolve these problems in the workplace. Many workers who have organized protests and demonstrations to improve conditions or demand compensation for injuries in the workplace, as well as those who have demanded unpaid wages and unpaid pensions and severance pay, have faced severe state repression. The ACFTU has never spoken out against the laws and regulations routinely used to justify imprisoning independent labor activists.

Domestic and international companies doing business in China, including Olympic sponsors, are generally required by the Chinese government to abide by these restrictive national laws and local regulations.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) is a U.N. agency that promotes international standards on human and labor rights. Member states, including China, are required to uphold ILO standards. All Olympic sponsors should press the Chinese government to revise its laws so that they conform to the standards of the ILO and to implement them.

For public information, a list of two categories of Olympic sponsors is available on this Web site:

As Olympic sponsors are still being selected and announced for the 2008 Olympics, this list is not exhaustive. It will be updated periodically. The list of sponsors does not imply either endorsement or criticism by Human Rights Watch.