Toyota chief: China labour trend both good and bad

[Omaha Steve]

Source: Reuters

* Higher wages would create new class of consumers in China

By Kevin Krolicki

NAGOYA, Japan, Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) President Akio Toyoda said on Friday higher wages among Chinese factory workers would create a new class of consumers, and that the trend therefore had both "good and bad elements".

"The experience of the past 100 years shows that auto workers become auto consumers also," Toyoda told a group of U.S.-based reporters. "This has both good and bad elements. A wage increase is not necessarily bad if properly managed."

Toyota and domestic rival Honda Motor Co (7267.T) have been the main victims of strikes over the past few months at Chinese factories of affiliated parts makers, with workers demanding higher pay and better working conditions. Both car makers were forced to suspend production in China to varying degrees due to supply shortages caused by the strikes.

In a fresh blow, one of Honda's four car factories in China partially halted production on Wednesday and Thursday after a few dozen of the plant's 1,000 employees refused to return to work. It marked the first known direct disruption at a car assembly plant in China caused by worker discontent.


Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTOE66806O20100709

[HEyHEY]

1. Ruh roh.... looks like the commies are behaving...uh like commies......

It'll be interesting to see the governrment reaction to workers demanding their rights.

[GreenEyedLefty]

2. A lot of us saw this coming, I'm sure!

[Indianademocrat91]

3. People want to work in good conditions???

What a fucking outrage! I can't believe that people would do such a thing and want to make more than 1 dollar a day while the companies makes millions from their hard work, no pay situation!

Maybe this will finally bring jobs back to America

come on china, fight for your rights!