Brown Bag Lunch Series

Speaker: Kevin Slaten, Program Coordinator, China Labor Watch

Since the 1980s, China has increasingly opened its economy to foreign investment and trade, transforming itself into the ‘world’s factory’. But as its controlled and centralized economy has privatized and liberalized, China’s workforce, especially its blue collar labor, has struggled to push back against commodification and rights infringements. A governance gap–poor law enforcement, corruption, and a lack of accountability–undoubtedly play a role in widespread rights abuse. But the tragedy of Chinese labor rights is also rooted in global capital and multinational companies that effectively control large swaths of labor in China. Against this backdrop, Kevin Slaten, program coordinator of China Labor Watch, will share his experiences researching and advocating for labor rights and the labor movement in China.

Joining China Labor Watch in 2012, Kevin Slaten has played key roles in the research and writing of investigative reports, campaigns to expose labor abuse in corporate supply chains, and public advocacy through international forums and street protest. He has been professionally and academically involved in the study of Chinese society and politics since 2006. As part of his graduate work, Kevin conducted a year of field research on Chinese labor rights defense and volunteered at a Chinese non-profit that trains and assists migrant workers. Before that, he served on a Fulbright Grant in Taiwan and worked at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He has written pieces for In These Times, South China Morning Post, ChinaFile, Global Post, the Diplomat, and others. Kevin has appeared on CNN, CNBC, Al Jazeera, Bloomberg, and other news programs discussing Chinese labor rights. He holds an MA in Advanced Chinese (2012) from The Ohio State University and a BA in Political Science and Sociology (2008) from the same school.

Kosher pizza will be served.

Photo credit: Dan Zen/Creative Commons

Brown Bag Lunch Series