The sex industry in China has grown rapidly over the last two decades and there are now an estimated four to six million sex workers in the country. However, they are all too often demonised by society as immoral and diseased. They are abused by clients and police alike and subject to arbitrary fines and detention for up to two years. Photograph of hair salon in Shenzhen by dcmaster available at flicr.com under a creative commons licence.

In China Labour Bulletin’s third comprehensive report on pneumoconiosis in China, we highlight the efforts of the workers fighting for justice, the growing support they have received from the media and civil society, and the wholly inadequate response thus far of the government. Photograph of pneumoconiosis activist He Bing by CLB.