Most striking workers have returned to work at the Nokia factory in thesouthern Chinese city of Dongguan after their recent industrial action, but experts have warnedthat the strike should serve as a lesson for transnational mergers and acquisitions.
Up to 1,000 employees went on strike since November 19, out of concern that their wages willbe cut as Nokia sells its mobile business to US software giant Microsoft.
The strike happened on the same day the Finnish telecom firm announced that itsshareholders had approved the 5.4-billion-euro ($7.2 billion) sale, with the transfer set to takeplace in early 2014.
About 32,000 employees of Nokia will join Microsoft, including staff from the Dongguan factory,founded in 1995 as one of Nokia's major production bases of mobile devices. The factory has astaff of 4,900.
The workers were worried that they would be forced to sign contracts with the new employerunder worse terms, namely lower salaries and fewer days of paid leave.
They demanded that their current contracts with Nokia should be terminated ahead of thetransfer, and the company should pay their compensation in full according to related laws andregulations.
The workers also wished to sign new employment contracts with Microsoft under equal or betterterms.
An executive of the factory told Xinhua that the workers gradually resumed their duties fromSunday after the two sides reached a compromise, with help from the local authorities.
"Microsoft has promised that the workers' salaries and benefits will stay the same as theircurrent standards within 12 months after the acquisition," according to an internal mail.
Gao Xiang, head of communications of Nokia China, said its Dongguan factory will also give a1,000-yuan bonus (about $164) to each worker who did not join the strike.
Those who refuse to go back to work will be fired, according to an internal mail. A workersurnamed Liang said more than 200 of his colleagues had already been sacked.
Similar strikes have also happened in other Chinese factories in other cases of transnationalmergers, such as Western Digital's purchase of Hitachi Global Storage Technologies andIndian tire maker Apollo's attempted acquisition of US Cooper Tire.
According to experts, multinationals must learn to take the interests of Chinese factories andworkers into account, as their support may have a great impact on mergers and acquisitions.
Wang Jiangsong, a professor with the China Institute of Industrial Relations, said the sporadicstrikes showed the awakening of Chinese workers' awareness on rights.
"China's first generation of migrant workers just want to earn some money and are less rights-conscious," Wang said. "But the new generation have a stronger rights consciousness. Theywill resist fiercely should their rights be violated."
