China'S Garment Manufacturing Industry Under Strike

Chinese garment manufacturers closely observe the recent strikes in China and believe that adequate wages should avoid workers dropping out of work and going to the streets to strike. Industrial analysts explain that factory workers are more willing to work and demand better wages and working conditions because of the rising labor awareness in China and labor shortages in some provinces. As a result, foreign investment and self run factories in Chinese enterprises are affected by the rising industrial turmoil.

In recent weeks, hundreds of workers have been on strike at the Japanese electronics factory in Tianjin and the TOYOTA auto parts supply plant. According to media reports, there have been several strikes in China's garment and textile factories in recent months. For example, in May, the labor strike in Zaozhuang, Shandong and the cotton mills in Pingdingshan were protesting for better pay.

GeoffreyCrothall, a spokesman for the Hongkong based labor rights group, points out that Chinese workers are feeling the gradual accumulation of pressure recently because wages are deliberately depressed.

Another strike led to another wave of strikes.

WillyLin, the vice president of Hongkong Federation of industry and general manager of Milo knitting company, said negotiations on salaries and other issues in the garment industry were not new.

WillyLin adds that many garment workers are more skilled than those in electronics or other industries.

Because the management of a knitting or sewing process female workers, but it took a while, they earn about 2000-4000 yuan (US $295-590) a month, which has far exceeded the minimum wage.

AndrewLo, executive director of crystal group, points out that some factories are paid by piece to encourage employees to improve their work efficiency, so that they will have to pay more than the minimum wage of more than 30%.

However, Crothall says that each factory has different ways to pay by piece, so it can not be equitable.

After 12 suicides in the Foxconn technology Longhua plant in Shenzhen, Guangdong, Terry Gou, President of Hon Hai group, announced that the salary has doubled. Many garment manufacturers are watching the subsequent impact of the incident.

AndrewLo explains that if the Foxconn incident becomes a case, the garment industry will be hit hard, and other factory employees will ask for treatment.

Many garment factories have been pferred to other countries to benefit from low wages.

AndrewLo said that 40% of the crystal group's products are manufactured outside China, and the proportion will increase to 60%.

Crothall believes that industrial turbulence is likely to continue to increase in the coming months, especially for labour conditions, because many factories fail to provide a good working environment, and the temperature will become more intense in the near future, and protests will follow.