On this day, 5 March 1922, seamen in Hong Kong and Canton (now Guangzhou) won pay rises of 15-30%, ending their strike which began in January. The British colonial government had declared the strike illegal, brought in the army and tried to use scabs from the Chinese mainland, and forced labour to break the strike. But the strike spread, was joined by rail workers, doctors, cooks and servants, and workers set up an armed militia to blockade food to the island by rail or sea. Eventually bosses were forced to cave in. They did not agree to a union shop, but they gave substantial pay rises, legalised the Seaman’s Union, freed imprisoned strike leaders and back paid half pay to workers for the strike days.
Pictured: the waterfront during the dispute https://ift.tt/2Tlp8G7