A gavel in a court. [Photo/IC]

Zeng Feiyang, who ran an illegal agency purportedly to "help workers defend their rights" in Panyu, South China's Guangdong province, was sentenced to three years in prison with a four-year probation on Monday. He was found to have received funds from overseas and illegally intervened in labor-capital conflicts. Southern Metropolis Daily commented on Tuesday:

Zeng said he was helping workers defend their rights, but actually he was creating conflicts between workers and employers and trying to disturb the social order.

But how did his agency exist so long? According to local workers, first he deceived them into believing he was helping them defend their rights. But soon he started asking them to raise unrealizable demands. Sometimes he even egged them to take radical measures to realize their demands.

As a result, some workers got some compensation, but the factories where they worked went bankrupt and the majority of them had to seek other jobs or just returned to the countryside. Zeng even asked the workers to oppose law enforcement officials, which is illegal. And workers who acted on his advice suffered the consequences of their actions.

The truth was finally revealed in the court on Monday: Zeng and his agency received funds from overseas and his intention was to create conflicts and taint the country's image.

Zeng has been penalized and his agency closed. The case teaches us some other lessons, too. Workers should defend their rights, but never through illegal means. Zeng admitted his guilt and asked people not to repeat his mistakes.

If workers defend their rights through illegal means, they will hurt the enterprises they work for as well as themselves.

Besides, it is also necessary for trade unions to better help workers. Some of the conflicts between workers and employers start with small disputes, and if unions work to resolve them in the initial stages they can prevent them from becoming major issues. To prevent agencies such as Zeng's from leading workers astray, unions and enterprises should work together.