China backs workers in foreign firms as unrest grows<\/p>\n
By Geoffrey Murray<\/p>\n
BEIJING (Kyodo): China has made it clear that it will not
\nsacrifice workers' rights and interests for the sake of
\nattracting more foreign investment.<\/p>\n
The official media has recently begun highlighting labor
\nunrest in foreign-owned companies and joint ventures, with
\nwarnings to foreign employers that they must abide by Chinese
\nlabor law, and not try to prevent their workforces from taking
\nstrike action.<\/p>\n
No matter how much the country might need foreign capital and
\ntechnology, say Chinese officials, \"we cannot sacrifice the
\ninterests of Chinese laborers to please certain foreign
\ninvestors.\"<\/p>\n
Most of the unrest seems to be in Hong Kong-, Taiwanese- and
\nSouth Korean-operated low-tech manufacturing concerns, which, in
\nany case, Beijing regards as a less attractive type of foreign
\ninvestment.<\/p>\n
Japanese companies, so far, have escaped fairly lightly,
\nalthough there was a strike at the Canon Zhuhai camera factory in
\nthe Zhuhai Special Economic Zone in 1992 over money and working
\nconditions, which took a considerable time to resolve.<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, with the central government now actively
\nencouraging workers to form in-house unions and to battle for
\ntheir rights -- supported by a new Workers Law which sets out the
\nroles and responsibilities for both sides -- more disputes are
\npredicted.<\/p>\n
Considerable unrest has been reported in the southern province
\nof Guangdong, where mainly Hong Kong and Taiwanese concerns run
\nmany low-tech factories.<\/p>\n
A recent survey of the area by the provincial branch of the
\nAll-China Federation of Trade Unions reported that almost 90
\npercent of workers there worked without any protection of their
\nsafety, eight out of 10 said they had been forced to work
\novertime or even work without pay to meet output quotas, and 18.9
\npercent reported they had suffered beatings or other forms of
\nphysical abuse for complaining about conditions.<\/p>\n
The Labor Ministry says most disputes occur in the small and
\nmedium-sized enterprises, \"mainly those which send materials,
\ndesigns and samples to be processed in China,\" and which,
\naccording to one official, do not bring much capital into the
\ncountry.<\/p>\n
\"They didn't bring any advanced management experience or
\ntechnology. They were merely workshops, and not the main target
\nfor China in seeking to attract foreign investment,\" the official
\nadded.<\/p>\n
Gradually the government has made clear that it wants these
\nsort of operations to disappear.<\/p>\n
Chinese newspapers rarely report strikes unless they are in
\njoint ventures, and there is usually a message behind any stories
\nthat appear.<\/p>\n
A recent front-page report in the Workers' Daily about a
\ndispute at a South Korean clothing factory made its point very
\nclearly, with a headline blaring \"If you make money on Chinese
\nland by using Chinese labor, you must abide by Chinese law.\"<\/p>\n
The labor dispute occurred at the end of June but has only
\njust been reported. In it, some 600 women at the Li Da clothing
\nfactory in the Qinhuangdao economic and technology zone in
\nnorthern Hebei Province walked out in protest at poor pay and
\nworking conditions.<\/p>\n
They demanded shorter hours, ending of excessive overtime,
\nwage rises, proper labor contracts and \"the right not to be
\nbeaten or insulted.\"<\/p>\n
The Workers Law states that no more than 36 hours overtime may
\nbe worked in a month, but the clothing factory employees said
\nthis provision was completely ignored, leaving them little time
\nfor their household chores at the end of a long and tiring day's
\nwork.<\/p>\n
The company had actually been fined 50,000 Yuan (5,747 U.S.
\ndollars) a month before for violations of the working hours'
\nprovisions, but no changes in the schedule were made, the
\nnewspaper reported.<\/p>\n
The management rejected the workers' initial request, declared
\nthe strike illegal, dismissed five workers' representatives and
\npenalized nine others.<\/p>\n
But after tough negotiations, the women won their first pay
\nrise in two years, along with a guarantee of one day a week off
\nwork, and a maximum of 36 hours overtime a month.<\/p>\n
More importantly, perhaps, the Communist Party committee of
\nQinhuangdao announced the formation of a labor union federation
\nfor workers in foreign-invested enterprises. Production targets
\nwill now be set jointly by shop stewards, trade union
\nrepresentatives and the foreign managers, the committee
\nannounced.<\/p>\n
The latter is an important point. Workers accustomed to
\nlackadaisical work routines at state-run enterprises, where
\nquotas or lack of orders leave employees with a lot of time on
\ntheir hands, have had something of a shock when moving to
\nforeign-run companies where wages are higher -- but so are the
\ndemands on their time.<\/p>\n
Japanese companies complain of a high turnover of workers, for
\nexample, primarily due to those who quit thinking \"we're expected
\nto work too hard.\"<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, in another dispute reported by the Workers' Daily,
\nthe Hong Kong general manager of Beijing's prestigious Palace
\nHotel, a venture built with money from the British colony, was
\nforced to retract the dismissals of four workers after protests
\nby other employees.<\/p>\n
The four drivers were dismissed on the grounds that the
\nhotel's business was not good. They responded by barricading the
\nfront entrance of the hotel with a bus until they won
\nreinstatement.<\/p>\n
The newspaper said the hotel had failed to abide by Chinese
\nlaw requiring 15 days notice of dismissal. The men had also lost
\ntheir jobs without the knowledge of the hotel's trade union or
\nits Chinese joint general manager, the paper said.<\/p>\n
The Workers' Daily reported the result of the dispute at the
\nLi Dang factory as a victory for the workers, and quoted the
\nfactory manager as contritely accepting the need to abide by
\nChinese law.<\/p>\n
Other Chinese newspapers which reported the incident and the
\ntrouble at the Palace Hotel emphasized that it is important for
\nforeign investors to \"draw the right lessons\" if they want to
\nenjoy labor harmony in their operations.<\/p>",
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