The world’s largest sports shoe manufacturer, which supplies Nike and Adidas, has been forced to halt production at a huge Chinese factory after thousands of workers continued to protest yesterday over pay and benefits.
Yue Yuen Industrial, a Hong Kong listed-company that produces one-fifth of the world’s athletic shoes, has faced labour unrest at a factory in Dongguang where employees have been on strike since April 14.
George Liu, executive director at Yue Yuen, which also supplies Puma, Asics and New Balance, said 40,000 workers had to stop work after protesters disrupted efforts to restart production at one complex. He said the factory was unsure how many were aggrieved and how many were responding to peer pressure.