Injured on the Job and Off

Following is a translated and excerpted interview with Mr. Xiang, an immigrant restaurant worker who was injured on the job, conducted by the Boston-based Chinese Progressive Association (CPA) as part of its Immigrant Workers Oral History Project. The interview was conducted by Lydia Lowe and Man Wai Yung.
(posted 3/26/01)

Working Conditions
Q: What was your job and how did you become injured?
A: I was working in the kitchen of a Chinese restaurant. In a Chinese restaurant, there aren't clear job descriptions. It's like, if anything needs help, then everyone is expected to help out. ...I was hired to be an appetizer cooker. Besides that, we also have some other side work to do.

Q: Can you describe your work environment?
A: The workplace was OK, not too good. You basically work 60 hours a week, from about 11:00 am to 8:30 pm. But on the weekends, you work eleven or eleven-and-a-half hours. The boss only pays for workers' compensation insurance, not health insurance. But if anything happened, they wouldn't want to call an ambulance. They'd just use their own car to bring you to the doctor, because the boss needs to pay $500-$700 dollars whenever they call an ambulance. But the patient would not have the evidence that an ambulance was called to prove that he got hurt at the workplace.

Injured 2 (The Injury)