雇工要给工钱，古今皆然，中外同理。但是，就在国务院已经下发了用工单位不得以任何名目拖欠和克扣农民工工资的通知后，有些急于拿到工钱返乡过春节的农民工仍拿不到钱。忙碌了一年的血汗钱，农民工要把每个钱掰成两瓣儿花的：盖新房、娶媳妇，备耕买种子、化肥、农药，子女来年的学费都指望着它呢。 拿不到工钱，已经够让农民工烦心的了，但闹心的事远不止这一件。诸如受了工伤，老板不予治疗，欲诉诸法律，又打不起官司；受了老板或包工头的侮辱，想讨个说法却又因担心丢了饭碗只好忍气吞声；劳动环境恶劣，劳动强度超负荷，有毒有害物质和气体严重戕害身体，却投告无门；各种名目的管理费多如牛毛，是个穿制服和戴箍的就敢向农民工收费，不交就可能被驱逐出城。凡此种种，都发出了一个讯号：各地政府对农民工的管理和服务要尽早到位，不然有可能出乱子甚至是大乱子。
You have to pay the people you hire. There is no exception to this in modem or ancient times, at home or abroad. However, some of the hired laborers haven’t got their pay though they are anxious to go home for the Spring Festival despite the fact that the State Council has issued a notice forbidding employers dock laborers’ wages in whatever name. The laborers plan to spend their money sparingly as so many things hang on the money earned with their blood and sweat: to build new houses, to get married, to buy seeds, chemical fertilizer, and pesticides to get ready for the spring plough, and to pay for their children’s education of the next year. It was already bothering them that they fail to get the money due to them. But there are far more troubles. For example, their bosses refuse to pay for their medical treatment when some of the laborers get injured during work, and they simply cannot afford to launch any lawsuit even if they want to. Sometimes they really want to seek justice when they are bullied by the boss or the foreman, but very often they have to swallow it lest they should lose their jobs. They suffer from adverse working environment, unbearable labor intensity, and toxic and harmful material and gases which seriously affecting their health, but there is no place where they can complain about these. Miscellaneous fees are imposed on them in various names and excuses--anyone wearing a uniform or even an armband can levy fees from them and refusal may result in the laborers’ being driven out of the city. All these are sending out warnings to us: there will be troubles, even big troubles unless governments at different levels do a good job in administering and serving laborers from the countryside.
