Children take a vacation with a twist

Sweeten the bitterness

Li Xiaolan, the Wang sisters' mother, was eager to see her beloved daughters, so her husband drove for more than 10 hours from their hometown to bring the children to her workplace on the first day of summer vacation.

As the holiday progressed, more children arrived at the factory. But they were not there for sightseeing or to play. Most of the time, they were confined to the plain factory, which is surrounded by dozens of similar-looking buildings.

At about 8 am, employees flock to the workshop to start their working day. Later, the hungry children drag themselves out of bed and prepare for the day, walking listlessly to the workshop to join their parents, yawning and stretching the entire way.

When the lunch break begins, workers from different parts of the country stir-fry pork and vegetables on dozens of induction cooktops lined up in the canteen on the ground floor of the dormitory building, making it a grand cooking contest of various Chinese cuisines.

The parents often work late into the night, sometimes until midnight if many orders need to be completed. Often, the children sit with their parents as they work late.

Despite the long hours waiting in workshops, the children always find ways to make the time more joyous and meaningful.

While teenagers often help their parents with menial tasks, such as handing over cloth, ironing ready-made clothes and changing bobbins, preschoolers and young children run and chase each other, playing hide-and-seek in the building, including the owner's office on the second floor, seeking entertainment in the simplest way.

"Although it is not good for the company's image, I can live with it, because safety is our highest priority. It is not safe for them to roam the streets in the sweltering heat," said Wu Yushan, the factory owner.

Wu said the building has been completely rewired to prevent electric shocks, and the guard has been instructed to stop children trying to sneak out of the factory without their parents.

The plant is closed every Sunday, so most of the workers take their children to parks or malls in the city.

Wu said the children need activities that are more educational and enlightening. He suggested that the local government use schools as summer camps for the hundreds of factory children in Shishi.

Local authorities have taken measures to ensure safe family gatherings. A program that allows college students to offer children companionship and tutoring services during school breaks has been launched, and local volunteers plan to take the children on tours of museums.