Police open investigation into Chinese workers’ treatment in Kotka

Finnish police have opened a preliminary investigation into the treatment of Chinese workers at a battery materials factory construction site in Kotka, Yle reports.

The Helsinki Police Department has registered a criminal report and says the investigation is at an early stage. Police have not disclosed which companies are involved or what offences may be under investigation.

Easpring Finland, the partly state-owned company developing the factory, said it had not been informed of the police inquiry. “The police have not asked us for information. If such a request comes, we will provide all support for any investigation,” said the company’s commercial director, Vesa Koivisto.

Yle has reported serious problems with Chinese workers’ conditions over the summer and autumn. A Chinese-owned subcontractor allegedly required workers to sign an employment contract that would be illegal under Finnish conditions. Some wages went unpaid, while large sums were deducted for accommodation and meals. Workers were also threatened and pressured, according to Yle’s reports.

More than 300 Chinese workers were employed at the site during the summer, when the workforce numbered more than 1,000 on some days. The Finnish-Chinese company Easpring Finland New Materials is partly owned by the state company Finnish Minerals Group, while most of the factory is owned by China’s Beijing Easpring. A review commissioned by Finnish Minerals Group also found numerous problems at the site. The Construction Trade Union and the Industrial Union are also investigating concerns there.