Chinese Workers Strike at Honda: A New Beginning?

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Increasing Labor Unrest

For nearly three decades, China had been a favorite among foreign manufacturers, given its abundant supply of cheap, relatively skilled labor.5 However, there were changing realities. Observers felt that after years of 12-hour work days, repetitive low-wage tasks, and an absence of breaks from work, China's workers were beginning to fight back.6 In one such incident, workers at the China Honda Auto Parts Manufacturing Co., Ltd. Foshan, Guangdong province went on strike on May 17, 2010.7 The strike saw a substantial amount of intimidation and bullying from both the management and the local union. However, the workers emerged victorious at the end.8

According to Anita Chan, labor expert from the University of Technology at Sydney, the strike was a "remarkable" development: the workers were demanding higher wages and the right to democratically elect union leaders. She observed that in the previous strikes, the issues were about not getting paid or being mistreated.⁹...

Excerpts >>

5] Kubo and Pomfret, "Strike at Honda China Supplier Enters 3rd Day," http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE65320N20100609 June 9, 2010.
6] "Labour Movement, Political Economy, Critics, Corporate Watch, Social Movement," worldlabour.org, June 31, 2010.
7] Li Hong, "Time to Defend Chinese Workers' Rights" http://links.org.au, June 7, 2010.
8] Vincent Kolo, "Honda strike a turning point for Nascent Workers' Movement," http://socialistworld.net June 12, 2010.
9] David Barboza, "In China Unlikely Labor Leader Just Wanted Middle-Class Life," www.nytimes.com June 13, 2010.

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