Motorola employees continue protests
- By Li Shen
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E-mail China.org.cn, August 22, 2012
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Employees of Motorola Mobility Nanjing R&D Center protest the reduction of workforce outside the office building. [Photo: it.sohu.com] |
Over 400 Motorola Mobility employees in Nanjing city's R&D Center continued protests on Monday, August 20, after the company had already agreed to increase discharge compensations.
According to a spokesperson for Motorola, the company's Greater China President Frank Meng has traveled to Nanjing to meet with employees. But negotiations have not yet led to any feasible solutions.
Last week, Motorola and parent company Google announced they would cut 4,000 jobs globally. The Beijing Morning Post reports that most of the 500 employees in the Nanjing R&D Center will be dismissed during this round of the layoffs and the Beijing Office will have to let some 700 employees go. Employees in both Nanjing and Beijing began demonstrating outside office buildings last Friday.
After the company had promised to grant them an extra payment in housing subsidies and annual leave however, almost all of the dismissed Motorola Beijing employees signed their discharge papers in the early evening of August 21.
In Nanjing, employees asked for higher compensations than those extended to the Beijing Office. They argued that it's more difficult for them to find proper employment there than it would be in Beijing. The company has stated that the compensation plan will not differ from region to region and for that reason shall not meet Nanjing employees' requirements.
As for job opportunities, a senior manager of Motorola Mobility has promised to provide Nanjing employees with the possibility to work in overseas divisions or the Beijing Office. The company also plans to hold a job fair in Nanjing.
Motorola's competitors Nokia Siemens and Nokia have also announced job cuts in its China divisions, but reactions have so far remained calm. Some employees have told the Beijing Morning Post that employee expectations and the way this type of situation is dealt with are key factors in triggering protest.
The Motorola Mobility staff was once very optimistic, namely after Google had bought the company for around $12 billion last year. They thought they would receive higher payments and welfare, but never expected to be laid off. Meanwhile, the company asked staff to sign their discharge papers just a few days after announcing the job cuts, giving them very little time to adjust to the sudden changes.
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