Stoppage at Chinese factory making Adidas and Nike shoes

About 2,000 workers clocked in but did not work at Yue Yuen’s plant in Jiangxi province

Policemen patrol as striking workers protest outside a Yue Yuen factory in Dongguan in China’s Guangdong province. Photograph: Reuters
Policemen patrol as striking workers protest outside a Yue Yuen factory in Dongguan in China’s Guangdong province. Photograph: Reuters

A strike at a Chinese factory that makes shoes for Adidas and Nike has spread to a sister factory in the next province. About 2,000 workers clocked in, but did not work, at Yue Yuen’s plant in Jiangxi province, southern China, joining 10,000 employees at Yue Yuen’s factory in Dongguan, Guangdong province, who have been on strike since April 14th.


Work stoppage
Up to 30,000 staff have stopped work in the strike – China's largest in recent memory, according to the New York-based non-governmental organisation China Labour Watch.

The Hong Kong-based China Labour Bulletin, another NGO, said: “A lot of factories are closing down or relocating. Five years ago, [strikes] were all about wage increases.

“But the focus of workers’ concerns now is very much on what happens if the factory closes down – do we get the social insurance that we’re entitled to?”

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The Dongguan complex, operated by the Taiwan-based Pou Chen Group, has at least 40,000 staff and produces footwear for Reebok, Nike, and more than 20 other brands. The Jiangxi plant mainly produces shoes for Adidas.

Authorities have deployed riot police and warned strikers against gathering at the factory.

According to the China Labour Bulletin, four workers were taken to hospital on the strike’s first day.

A Yue Yuen spokesman told Chinese media that the firm had offered to raise workers’ allowances by 230 yuan (€26) a month. It also promised a social security benefit plan.

One worker, Xiang Feng (28), said at least 80 per cent of strikers were likely to refuse the offer. “Workers may end up with a take-home salary unchanged, or maybe even lower,” she said.

– ( Guardian service)