Wind Takers' Social Practice (Part 2)

After a moment of reflection, Lina continued her explanation:

"My brother always said his boss was a good man, and he wasn't wrong."

"According to the workers, Mr. Erwin not only secretly gives extra subsidies to the 'Indentured Laborers,' but also treats the 'Registered Workers' almost as well as the formal apprentices."

"In other factories, most business owners would desperately try to lower the wages of these 'Registered Workers'—"

"Because the official status of these Registered Workers is that of the employer's domestic servant. Their very existence is a loophole in the regulations."

"So they can't freely seek jobs like ordinary apprentices, they can't change jobs or switch allegiances. They rely entirely on the employer's protection to continue working in Piltover."

"So, a de facto relationship of personal dependence has formed between the employer and the Registered Worker."

"Then... then they're basically the employer's slaves?" Viktor asked in surprise.

"That's nothing like being a slave!" Lina sighed helplessly. "If Registered Workers are squeezed too hard, they can always escape back to Zaun."

"But those 'Indentured Laborers' are the real slaves!"

"Their personal freedom is completely controlled by those foremen. They suffer double oppression from both the employer and the foreman. Not only is their pay lower than that of ordinary apprentices, but the foremen take the lion's share of their wages."

"And if they try to escape... haha."

"Professor Viktor, do you know—"

"Those who run Indentured Laborer businesses in Piltover are mostly Zaunite gangs like the Iron Fist Gang."

"And those Indentured Laborers are, in fact, debt slaves controlled by them through usurious loans."

"If they try to escape, they deserve to be beaten to death."

"The Piltover Enforcers won't care about that kind of thing."

"This..." Viktor was even more shocked.

Now he understood why Lina said Erwin had a conscience and was a good person.

Those Registered Workers were workers in name, but servants in reality.

Erwin could have exploited them even more with lower wages. But he didn't.

Those Indentured Laborers were workers in name, but slaves in reality.

As an employer, Erwin only needed to pay "rent" to those foremen, the slave owners. But he avoided the foremen and secretly used his own money to subsidize these slaves.

Thinking about it like that...

Saying Erwin was a good person wasn't an exaggeration.

But even such a good person, such a conscientious factory... They had only investigated for less than an afternoon and had already uncovered so many shocking facts.

"What else?" Viktor instructed Lina to continue her report, his tone heavy, as if he were asking himself.

"Yes, I'll continue... There are 148 apprentices of various types, including 52 male workers, 72 female workers, and 24 child laborers under the age of 14..."

There are even child laborers?

Erwin, do you have any conscience at all!

Viktor wanted to curse in his heart.

But after briefly recalling his long-abandoned homeland of Zaun, he understood—

For the children of Zaun, being a child laborer in Piltover wasn't a bad thing at all. Not only was it not a bad thing, but it could even be said to be an enviable blessing.

Working in Piltover meant that at least the working environment wasn't harsh, and they wouldn't have to worry about food and clothing.

If these children were still in Zaun, just staying alive would be difficult enough.

"Women and children have a hard time surviving in Zaun."

"Mr. Erwin employing so many female workers and child laborers can be considered 'doing good'."

Viktor sighed with emotion.

But Lina immediately told him that Mr. Erwin's kindness wasn't so pure:

"No, Mr. Viktor."

"Mr. Erwin generally pays male workers 10 Silver Wheel per week according to market prices, female workers 6-7 Silver Wheel per week, and child laborers 3-4 Silver Wheel per week."

"The difference in labor costs for male workers, female workers, and child laborers is due to the difference in labor efficiency for most jobs that require physical strength."

"But according to our investigation, the circuit board soldering work, which employs the most people in this factory, doesn't require much physical strength from the workers... So the work efficiency of male workers, female workers, and child laborers is actually not that different."

"Which means..."

"Mr. Erwin likely hires more female workers and child laborers because—their work efficiency is no worse than that of male workers, but they are paid less. Hiring women and children saves more on labor costs."

"This..." Viktor completely gave up on his illusions.

Yes. People who can become business owners and survive in fierce competition are certainly not purely good people.

Sure enough, Lina continued:

"When these Zaunite apprentices enter the factory, they all have to sign a 'guarantee'."

"The general content of the so-called guarantee is that the employer is not responsible for the apprentice's birth, old age, sickness, death, or work-related accidents. Compensation must be paid for damages to the factory's interests. In serious cases, they will be expelled, their apprenticeship terminated, and they will be sent back to Zaun..."

"The contract unilaterally protects the interests of the business owner and offers no protection whatsoever to the worker."

"Once workers enter the factory, their situation becomes extremely passive. They are not only monitored by the foreman but also subject to a series of unequal 'house rules' of the factory. Representative examples include body searches, dismissals, demerits, fines, penal labor, and restrictions on toilet breaks."

"The so-called body search involves foremen and security guards conducting a unified search after work to prevent apprentices from stealing valuable materials such as Mithril, circuit boards, and Hextech Gems from the workshop."

"Body searches are conducted regardless of gender. Once theft is discovered, the foreman will carry out vigilante justice. Minor offenses result in being forced to stand as a public example, while more serious offenses involve physical assault. Cases of people being hung up and beaten have also occurred."

"What?" Viktor couldn't listen anymore. "This... this is too much!"

"What's so excessive about it?" Lina couldn't help but roll her eyes. "The workers should be grateful for Mr. Erwin's lenient rules, which give them a chance to reform."

"Other factories simply hand thieves over to the police station, letting the Enforcers kick them back to Zaun."

"Anyway, Piltover factories will never lack manpower. If they kick someone out, they can just recruit a new one."

"Honestly, if it were my brother, I think he'd rather be beaten by the foreman than be kicked back to Zaun by the Enforcers."

"Therefore, the apprentices' fear, flattery, and even obsequiousness towards the factory foremen... these seemingly servile behaviors are not difficult to understand."

Viktor fell silent again.

Finally, he could only sigh, "Alas!"

But what good was sighing?

Wind Takers, they/them cannot just lament here.

They must get the workers to join them in speaking out, putting in effort, and changing this world together!

"We must start a publicity campaign as soon as possible to unite these workers..."

"Unite?" Lina shook her head helplessly. "Professor Viktor, that's what we wanted to talk to you about."

"We discovered through our investigation that these workers are not united at all."

Everyone is living a hard life, they are all brothers in hardship, shouldn't they naturally unite?

Not really.

"Due to various differences in age, gender, region, blood ties, identity, and education level, the apprentices are divided into several mutually hostile factions."

"Male and female workers are hostile to each other. Female workers feel that male workers receive the same pay for different work and get so much salary for nothing; male workers always scold female workers for being flirtatious and cheap, liking to get into the beds of Piltoverians and offering themselves to Piltover old men."

"In addition, adult workers often bully child laborers;"

"Those who have a good relationship with the foreman often bully those who have a bad relationship with the foreman;"

"A few who have relatives also band together and bully those who have no brothers to help."

"There is even a chain of contempt between formal apprentices, Registered Workers, and Indentured Laborers. Those with legal status look down on those without status, and those without status look down on those who are enslaved."

"And the most outrageous thing is:"

"Even though everyone is from Zaun, those from the Border Market District look down on those from the Black Alley, and those from the Black Alley look down on those from the Underground Trench District."

"Everyone naturally divides into different gangs and factions, hostile to each other and tearing each other apart."

"Unite? How to unite?"

"Sigh," Lina said with a headache, "Professor Viktor, how should we do our publicity work?"