Thousands of coal miners took to streets in Heilongjiang province over the weekend to protest against unpaid wages as Chinese authorities start restructuring state-owned coal and steel plants to combat the ongoing economic slowdown.

The protesting workers were reported to be employees at Shuangyashan Mine, owned by Longmay Mining Group. Local media sources claim the  workers in Shuangyashan Mine have not been paid wages for many months. Many workers were also angry that their wages have been cut to 800 Yuan ($123.19) a month, from 1,000 Yuan ($153).     

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Images of the protest posted on social media showed workers holding up banner signs that read: "We want to live, we want to eat."

"Thousands of people have been protesting," an eyewitness told Reuters, adding that "The police have been taking people away".

Heilongjiang government's official website lso posted a statement on Saturday acknowledging that some employees of Shuangyashan Mine have not been paid. However, the statement did not mention anything about the protest.      

The ongoing unrest in Shuangyashan Mine is largely seen as a result company's falling profits. Longmay Mining Group has reportedly been making losses since 2012. Last year, the company announced that it will slash 100,000 jobs in the next three months to control its losses.

Last week, Wuhan Iron and Steel - one of China's largest steel makers - announced that it plans to lay off 50,000 workers as part of its cost restructuring.

Around 1.8 million workers are expected to lose their jobs as authorities restructure the country's coal and steel companies.

Although the Chinese government has announced stimulus package of $15 billion for workers affected by massive layoffs, many are still uncertain about their future.      

TagsChinese Coal Mines, lay offs in China, Chinese Economy, china