On June 11, The Strike Tide In China Spread To The Mainland Morning News

The strike tide in the Pearl River Delta seems to be spreading to the inland areas of China, and its scale has expanded.

After the strike at Honda's factory in Guangdong, another Taiwan funded enterprise and a Japanese company also went on strike at a factory in China. The latter two enterprises are located in Jiangxi and Shaanxi and Xi'an respectively, far away from the more affluent areas such as the Pearl River Delta and the Yangtze River Delta.

Deng Shi'an, chief economist of the Bank of East Asia in Hong Kong, said: "As long as there is a little spark, the whole China will know, which may trigger similar activities in other factories."

Workers are dissatisfied with the huge income gap, the rising cost of living, the long working hours and short rest time. If this instability continues to expand, the government will face a difficult choice, that is, whether to make concessions to workers or to protect investors who are vital to China's exports.

The strikes reported so far have all occurred in foreign-funded enterprises, and Taiwan Hon Hai has said it seeks to transfer some of its production capacity to other regions. However, Lv Kejian, Director of the Asia Department of the Ministry of Commerce of China, said on Thursday that the recent measures to raise the minimum wage in many provinces and cities of China, as well as the related rising labor costs, will not affect China's attraction of foreign capital, because the Chinese government's policy of expanding domestic demand has helped create a larger domestic market, giving foreign investors more reason to seek business opportunities in the world's third largest economy.

About 900 workers from two factories of Japan Brothers Industrial Corporation in Xi'an went on strike on June 3, demanding higher wages and improved working conditions. The company said the two factories had resumed production on Thursday, but the labor and management sides were still negotiating on wages and working conditions.

According to China Labor Watch, Jiangxi Taiwan funded enterprises and Adidas supplier Jiujiang Simaibo Sports Equipment Co., Ltd. also went on strike, with 8000 workers participating. A representative of the Jiujiang Taiwan Merchants Association said that the factory had resumed work on Thursday. The previous strike was caused by a dispute between workers and security guards, not related to wages.

Honda is the company that has been hit hardest in the recent strike wave in China. The company's gearbox factory in Foshan had just settled a labor dispute last week, and a nearby factory that produced exhaust systems for Honda also went on strike. Then, a factory in Guangdong that produced car lock systems for Honda also went on strike.

Duan Yi, a rights lawyer in Shenzhen, said: "The wages and working conditions of workers have not been improved for a long time, even lower than the minimum standards set by the government, and also lower than the overall level of national economic development."

"Migrant workers are also more aware of their own strength. Many companies have weak supply chains. Once a factory shuts down, the entire supply chain will be paralyzed... I think workers know this and are learning to exert pressure."