Misha G. | Red Phoenix correspondent | Massachusetts–

Since Dec. 2, approximately 2,000 construction workers hired to build the new BYD manufacturing factory in Camaçari, in the state of Bahia, Brazil, have gone on strike to demand dignified living and working conditions. BYD, a multibillion dollar Chinese automotive manufacturing corporation, has been mired in controversies ever since they started building the factory.

Back in December 2024, a complaint alleging forced labor and human trafficking by subcontractors at the construction site led the Labor Prosecutor’s Office (MPT) to conduct a surprise inspection which exposed the horrible conditions the workers were subjected to, leading the MPT to sue the company. The Brazilian authorities found that workers could not leave their dormitories without permission, were forced to work long hours without weekends, were deprived of their wages and their passports, and lived in conditions unfit for the labor they carried out; they were not even supplied mattresses. 

BYD has since dropped the contractor, Jinjang Construction Brazil Ltda., reporting that they had committed irregularities, not BYD. As always, when it comes to billionaire multinationals, nobody is responsible; everyone is a saint.

The brigade members from the newspaper of the Revolutionary Communist Party of Brazil, A Verdade, arrived at the factory in November and encountered a truck drivers’ strike, as the automaker opted to hire external companies to handle logistics, abruptly terminating contracts with local drivers.

BYD then moved on to exploiting Brazilian workers instead; the conditions still did not improve. This resulted in the indefinite strike of the construction workers that begun last Tuesday. The strike was both a result of the terrible conditions and of the nationwide work stoppage called by the Class Struggle Movement (MLC) against the 6 day work week. The workers’ demands include a 30% hazard pay increase; an increase in food and transportation allowances; the installation of drinking fountains, changing rooms, restrooms, and smoking areas; the provision of more buses for transportation within the factory, as workers currently have to walk more than 4 km; the regularization of salary payments; and an update to the minimum wage.

The workers are truly standing against a tremendous power. Not only is the auto manufacturer calling the military police on the striking workers, but the union supposedly representing the workers’ interests, SINDTICCC, is actively trying to stop the strike. They have denied to the bourgeois press that it recognizes, condones, or will participate in achieving the legitimate demands of the workers. Union representatives appeared only on the third day of the strike. The unity of the workers was not shaken by the threats from the puppet union. In an assembly, the workers decided to form the Free Union of Construction, Assembly and Industrial Maintenance Workers of Camaçari and Region, affiliated with the MLC. 

As Paulo Henrique, a striking worker said in defense of the ongoing strike: “As long as they don’t resolve all the outstanding issues we have here, we’re going to stay put and they’re going to suffer even more. Their project depends on us, and if we don’t work, nothing will get done there,” 

The brigades of the newspaper A Verdade and the mass organizations of the Revolutionary Communist Party of Brazil have played a key role in the organization and support of the workers. They helped agitate the workers, organize the struggle and formulate the demands. In fact, without this organization, the struggle would have been impossible. They played the exemplary role that a communist party should play in organizing and leading the struggle of the workers. 

This struggle is especially relevant to  the international workers’ movement, and the nascent movement in the United States especially, as many U.S. “leftists” treat any opponent of U.S. imperialism (which it regards as the only imperialism) as an ally. Such logic leads many to support China as a supposed counterweight to American imperialism, going as far as calling China socialist despite its billionaires and stock markets, its support for imperialist war in Syria and Ukraine,. When evidence of exploitation or repression in China emerges, it’s often dismissed as American, counter-”revolutionary” propaganda. This cannot be claimed about the strike as it is being led by the militant Revolutionary Communist Party of Brazil which actively and meaningfully opposes US imperialism.  

As Marxist-Leninists, we must reject this narrow view of imperialism, on traditional national, ethnic or aesthetic grounds. We recognize that as American capitalism enters deeper crisis and Chinese capitalism expands, eventually surpassing U.S. imperialism, the struggle against Chinese imperialism will only grow in importance. China already engages in extensive capital export, an inherently exploitative practice, enough to place it third in the world and rising in foreign direct investment, behind only the U.S. and Japan. The BYD factory is a clear illustration of this dynamic. In reality, the CPC functions like any ruling party of a capitalist state, representing its bourgeoisie. While Chinese and U.S. imperialism clash, they ultimately share the goal of preserving global capitalist domination—a reality underscored by China’s suppression of the Philippine revolution and its investments in the genocidal Zionist state of Israel.

Recognizing China as an imperialist power is the only truly revolutionary position, and is the only stance aligned with the interests of the global proletariat and with true proletarian internationalism.

The BYD factory is a clear illustration of this dynamic. It is not a benevolent corporation, representing a socialist government: BYD made US$107 billion in profit in 2024 and continues to profit in 2025, having sold more than one million units by April, a 60% increase year-on-year, all based on the monstrous and unflinching exploitation of its workers. We must stand in solidarity with all workers against capitalism and capitalist exploitation wherever it rears its head. We must also learn from the militancy of the Brazilian workers and understand how similar the problems they face are to the problems faced by American workers. Only through militantly opposing all imperialism and opportunism in the labor movement can we ever hope to build serious power.

Solidarity with the striking workers of the BYD Factory!!

Long live the Revolutionary Communist Party in Brazil!!

Down with capitalist imperialism!

Recommended reading: “China: Is it imperialist or a ‘good imperialism’?“ 

To follow the strike as it occurs, follow Unidade Popular Bahia on Instagram. 

Categories: Brazil, China, International, Workers Struggle