The accusations have arisen following the release of a worrying report by the National Labor Committee (NLC), in which it slams the working practices of KYE Systems Corp. which is based in the city of Dongguan in China?s Guangdong province.

According to the report, the production facility is guilty of hiring hundreds of students aged 16 and 17 who are tasked with working through 15-hour shifts for six and seven days per week in return for scant little payment.

While such conditions may seem harsh, the report also claims factory employees often spent up to 97 hours per week on-site (working for around 80 of those hours) in 2007 and 2008 ahead of the recent economic downturn. During 2009, employees were spending 83 hours per week at the factory and working for 68 hours.

Adding insult to injury, the NLC adds that workers at KYE Systems receive a take-home wage of just 52 cents per hour and are not permitted to talk, listen to music or even take bathroom breaks while on shift. Those who break the rules are reportedly forced to clean the factory toilets.

Source : Konaxis