Workers at some plants of Yue Yuen Industrial Holdings in Dongguan in Guangdong province went on strike for a third day on Wednesday, according to employees and labor-rights activists.
As reported, the strike is reportedly over benefits, particularly the alleged failure of Yue Yuen to pay full social security and housing fund contributions. Yue Yuen makes footwwear for Nike, Adidas, Reebok, Asics, New Balance, Under Armour, Converse, Salomon, Timberland and others.
The number of workers on strike is unknown. Yue Yuen said Tuesday more than 1,000 factory workers took to the streets in protest, and those striking increased today but gave no figure. New York-based China Labor Watch estimated strikers at 30,000, according to Bloomberg.
An Adidas spokeswoman told the Wall Street Journal said Yue Yuen's plant that makes products for Adidas is operating with about 50 percent of its workforce. Adidas said it has had no slowdown in production volumes and China is still the most critical sourcing market for the company.
A spokesman for Nike told the Journal the company is “aware of and concerned by the events at the Yue Yuen factory” and is monitoring talks between workers and factory management, as well as production of its products.
