An all-out strike began on Sunday in some Chinese-run companies in the Prato textile district, the largest in Europe and the benchmark for the production of "Made in Italy" clothing, also known for the established system of labor exploitation in many of the companies, which are mainly Chinese. The strike - the first in the history of Chinese industry in Italy - began on a Sunday, a day when companies should be closed, but in fact they are practically never closed. The strike was called by the SUDD Cobas Prato-Florence union, which has long been concerned with the situation of workers in companies of this type and promoting the 40-hour work week within them. According to the union's complaints, workers would instead work more than 80 hours, 12 hours a day for 7 days a week, off the books and without protections or under part-time contracts that are not respected. Some would be asked to return their 13th month pay, and others would never even see a paycheck.