Wal-Mart employees set up 2nd union in Shenzhen
By Chen Hong (China Daily)
Updated: 2006-08-05 09:01
SHENZHEN: In the first Wal-Mart store established on the Chinese mainland, a
group of 42 employees met to establish the US retail giant's second Chinese
trade union, following only a week after the first.
"We will commit to establishing a stable and harmonious relationship between
the employees and the employer, which would promote the consistent development
of the company," Zhou Liang, a 27-year-old employee who was elected union
chairman, said in the meeting.
Zhou reiterated that employees have the right to form and join trade unions
in China, which is guaranteed by law.
Wal-Mart's Chinese headquarters, also located in Shenzhen, has been silent on
the issue.
"We hadn't been formally notified of the establishment of the unions and we
can't make any comment on it," a public relations official of Wal-Mart China,
surnamed Wang, told China Daily on Friday.
"We have provided multiple channels for employees to communicate with the
management. They won't feel any difficulty in voicing their concerns or
dissatisfaction with Wal-Mart," Wang said.
The company just commissioned a consulting firm to complete a staff survey,
in which employee concerns from the future development of the company and
corporate culture to daily arrangements such as the canteen and shuttle services
have been included.
Wal-Mart, the world's biggest retailer, has long resisted the involvement of
unions or other third parties with its work force.
It gave in under the pressure from All-China Federation of Trade Unions
(ACFTU) and said in a statement that "establishing a union is a voluntary action
of associates" in late 2004.
The first such union was established one week ago, in Quanzhou of East
China's Fujian Province.
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