Minister downplays impact of Chinese factory strikes

Jun 19, 2010, 11:27 GMT

Beijing - A wave of strikes at factories across China were an 'isolated phenomenon' which would not push manufacturers out of the country, a cabinet minister was reported as saying Saturday.

The strikes that interrupted production at plants including car manufacturers Toyota and Honda would not have a sweeping effect once appropriately resolved, Minister of Commerce Chen Deming told Hong Kong-based Phoenix TV, according to the China Daily newspaper.

Chen downplayed concerns that the disputes, which have resulted in wage hikes in several cities and provinces, would provoke companies to move their factories to countries with lower labour costs.

'Given the circumstances of the lingering global economic crisis and various other difficulties faced by enterprises, we will ensure the workers get a moderate increase in their pay and simultaneously guarantee that the employers will not be overburdened by the rising personnel costs,' Chen was quoted as saying.

The minister's comments came as workers at a parts supplier for Japan's Toyota Motor Corp staged the second strike this week, the newspaper reported.

There were also concerns that workers at a factory making locks for Honda could walk out after management on Friday failed to meet their demands by workers, according to the Hong-Kong based South China Morning Post.

'[These are] just pent-up demands for higher wages, people have been having to get by on very low wages for a very long time,' Geoffrey Crothall of the Hong-Kong based China Labour Bulletin, was quoted as saying.