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From China Daily:

Workers at a company in Henan province ended a two-day strike over low pay on Thursday.

Wang Gengming, public relations manager at Xinfei Electric Co Ltd, said the company is in talks with worker representatives over the salary issue.

According to a report in Beijing Business Today on Thursday, the strike involved thousands of workers.

Photographs were circulated online showing protesters blocking the company's gate on Tuesday. One photograph showed a strikers' poster on the wall of the company, which claimed salaries had remained stagnant for a decade.

"The monthly income of workers in the temperature control barometer workshop is 890 yuan ($142) during slow seasons and 1,200 yuan during busy seasons, which is far less than the city's average income level of 2,160 yuan," the poster read.
Xinfei Electric, founded in Xinxiang city in 1984, was a leading Chinese refrigeration products manufacturer in the 1990s. It currently has about 15,000 workers, according to the company.
In 1994, Hong Leong Group Singapore, through its subsidiary -Hong Leong Asia Ltd - bought a 51 percent stake in Xinfei. The Singaporean company increased its controlling stake to 90 percent in 2005, which Xinfei said on its website "is testimony to the confidence and commitment that Hong Leong Asia Ltd has in the company's future growth".

However, according to the protesters' poster, the company's market share has shrunk from a peak of 15 percent to less than 5 percent in the second quarter this year and its net profit stood at minus 118 million yuan for the first half of this year.
The protesters attributed the losses to Xinfei's management and called on Lian Guoqing, the company's human resources manager, and Zhang Weitian, deputy general manager in charge of production, to step down.

Workers threw eggs at Lian during a conference in August when he threatened to dismiss some of them, according to a video circulated online.

Some workers placed a photograph of the late general manager Liu Bingyin on the company's front gate along with fruit and other food to show their respect for their former boss.
Li Li, a lawyer at Xinxiang-based Henan Dazhong Law Firm, said the workers' union should push their employer for a pay raise.
"It's incredible that such a big company as Xinfei has not increased the workers' salaries for 10 years," he said.
"If the union had pushed for a pay raise earlier, this industrial action might have been avoided."

In China, most unions are weak and have little power to protect workers rights, Li added.

From CLB:

Workers at appliance-maker, Xinfei Electric Co. Ltd ended a four day strike on 12 October after management agreed to their demands for higher pay, better benefits and management reforms, the mainstream Chinese media reported today.

The dispute started on 9 October with several hundred employees gathering outside the company quarters in Xinxiang, Henan demanding a better pay deal. As the protest gained more momentum, more demands were added to the list of long-standing grievances and eventually the workers presented a detailed eight-point list of demands.

On the afternoon of 12 October, management held a press conference at which it reportedly acceded to the workers’ eight demands. Management promised to immediately raise salaries by 300 yuan to 1,500 yuan a month, and increase workers’ salaries again by another 200 yuan in January 2013.

Improvements in overtime and holiday pay were also agreed to and the company promised to remove two of the managers workers had blamed for the factory’s poor performance this year. Former executives, who the workers approved, of would return to the Singapore-invested company, Sina reported.

It is relatively unusual in labour disputes for all the workers’ demands to be accepted and the Xinfei workers were understandably pleased with their success. One employee told Sina: “This is a preliminary victory for us workers. Although it is not a big achievement, it does show the strength of the workers. We were successful; our unity got a big thumbs-up.”

Many manufacturers have or are in the process of relocating from the coastal regions to the interior of China in a bid to cut costs. However, the Xinfei strike, and the wage demands in particular, show that workers in inland provinces such as Henan still will not accept low wages and benefits even if the cost of living is generally lower than in the coastal provinces.

From Global Times:

A strike involving thousands of workers at Sino-Singaporean joint venture Xinfei Electric Co (Frestech) ended on Friday, but the rumblings of discontent are far from over.

The Henan Province-based company announced the same day at a press conference that it would meet workers' request for a monthly pay raise of 500 yuan ($79.8). Also, two middle-level Singaporean managers will be sacked and a Chinese manager who had been fired will be allowed to resume his post.

On Friday afternoon, workers began to pull down their protest banners and went back home.

However, four workers with direct knowledge of the matter told the Global Times on condition of anonymity that many workers are still not satisfied with the strike results, "and we will possibly stage another round of strike action soon."

Low wages

Thousands of Xinfei workers began the strike on October 9, demanding better pay and changes in management at the white goods manufacturer.

The strike escalated to a peak after two days as nearly 10,000 workers, accounting for about 50 percent of the total employees, halted production and gathered at the front entrance of the company with banners and posters calling for the company to raise wages.

A few representatives of workers gave speeches, and songs encouraging the workers to unite were broadcast around the company.

"I have not had a pay raise for 10 years," said one worker who has been at the company for 17 years, noting that the salaries of the working staff at Xinfei currently range from 800 yuan to 1,600 yuan a month.

By comparison, during the first half of this year, the average monthly salary in Henan Province stood at 3,126 yuan, an increase of 13.1 percent over a year earlier, according to the Henan Provincial Bureau of Statistics.

In Xinxiang, the city where Xinfei is based, the monthly salary last year was 2,160 yuan.

"But after the pay raise, my salary will be 1,580 yuan, still far below the average," said one worker, adding that considering the increasing burden of inflation and rising rent, "I feel my life is suffocating me."

According to the workers, members of the foreign management staff have annual salaries of over 500,000 yuan.

Calls to the management office of the company went unanswered.

They also want the Singaporean management team to either leave the company or make changes, according to some workers at the company. They said that the foreign side, the Singaporean Hong Leong Group, has failed to adapt to the Chinese market.

Rise and fall

Established in 1984, Xinfei became a leading refrigeration products brand in the country in the 1990s, with its fridges taking 13 percent of the market share in China at that time, according to the company.

In 2004, according to brand valuation consultancy World Brand Lab, the Xinfei brand was worth 3.788 billion yuan.

But this year the company did not give a price for the Xinfei brand because it is no longer on the list of China's 500 most valuable brands.

Hong Leong Group, which bought a 51 percent stake in Xinfei in 1994, spent S$88.8 million yuan ($52.5 million at that time) in 2005 to raise its shareholding in the company to 90 percent, according to a company statement in 2005.

Teo Tong Kooi, CEO of Hong Leong Asia, said that increasing the firm's stake in "China's second largest refrigerator and freezer maker" was part of Hong Leong's global expansion strategy, reads the statement.

According to Hong Leong, Xinfei's revenue reached S$426.3 million during the first half of 2005, an increase of 23 percent over a year earlier.

But Xinfei's golden period finished a few years later. According to statistics from Beijing-based consultancy All View Consulting, the total sales of Xinfei products dropped by 37 percent year-on-year between January and June this year. Its losses reached 118 million yuan during the same period.

"By July this year, Xinfei's share of the domestic refrigerator market had declined to 3.1 percent, which is very small for a home appliance manufacturer," said Liu Buchen, a home appliance expert at Zhengzhou-based Jiachunqiu Media Institution.

Workers blamed the Singaporean management team, saying they were not familiar with the China market and had failed to focus on research and development.

"After the company decided in August to fire a senior Chinese production manager, He Qiang, who had been engaged in research and freezer production for many years, we became angry and planned a strike during the National Day holidays," said a worker, who also said that the company frequently laid off Chinese staff with the excuse of "bad sales."

Hard to adapt

Xinfei is not the first company run by an overseas firm to have difficulty in adapting in China. In early 2011, US electronics retailer Best Buy shut down its last store in the Chinese mainland, partly owing to disappointing sales.

In 2007, Chinese washing machine manufacturer Little Swan denounced Panasonic for losses at their two joint venture companies.

But Xinfei's case is more complicated. In recent years, there have been many media reports saying Hong Leong was looking for potential buyers to take over Xinfei, with a target price of $700 million. Japan's Panasonic and Chinese home appliance giants Haier and TCL were all reportedly on the list of possible buyers.

Insiders at Xinfei said Hong Leong's selling plan has encountered major difficulties, because the price was too high.

"The possible future sale of Xinfei has hurt the confidence of the dealers who sell its products and raised doubts among consumers about the brand's ability to offer long-term services," said Liu, noting that the local government of Xinxiang, which owns a 10 percent stake in the company, is also trying to help, but in "the wrong way."

Backed by the local government, Xinxiang Xinfei Industrial Co was established in September to produce home appliances ranging from refrigerators and air conditioners to washing machines and freezers, which are "pretty much the same products that the old Xinfei is providing," said Liu.

"Two companies, under the same name and offering the same kind of products, will speed up the downward trend for Xinfei, because the situation will confuse consumers," said Liu.

Workers at Xinfei said they are not optimistic about the company, and many of them are now looking for jobs elsewhere.

From CLW:

Oct. 9th, all the workers of Henan Frestech Co., Ltd. turned out a strike after finishing a failed negotiation with management on the salary treatment. The cause of the event was workers were complaining about that there was not a raise on salary during the past decade to support their daily life so that they requested a pay talk with the leaders. However, the both sides didn't reach the agreement, thus leading this event.

From Southern Metropolis Daily:

“要生存，涨工资，救新飞”。昨日，新飞电器停工持续发酵，停工者发出《告全体新飞同胞书(第3号)》，进一步要求提升福利，员工停工持续到第三日，并期望与新飞电器的实际控制人、新飞电器控股股东新加坡丰隆亚洲首席执行官阮健平进行谈判。此时，距离新飞电器今年9月中旬宣布更换新标、重塑品牌还不到一个月的时间。

　　据参与停工的新飞员工介绍，至昨日下午，停工人数将达到6000人以上，生产部门全面停工。此前，停工员工已经发出过两封《告全体新飞同胞书》，宣泄对于投资方以及管理层累积十年的不满。昨日，新飞电器确认了停工的发生，但是就谈判与停工事件不愿意评论，高管手机则无人接听。

　　这次停工事件，不仅是员工与投资方矛盾的一次总爆发，也折射了新飞电器这只雄鹰走向没落的无奈。

　　全面停工

　　“下午起，生产部门全面停工了，”昨日，新飞电器内部员工告诉南都记者，新飞电器集团总部爆发的大规模员工集体停工事件持续升级，新飞电器冰箱一部、展示柜制造部、冷柜制造部已经停工，冰箱二部也将因材料短缺在昨日下午停工，“生产方面，最少6000人已经停工了”。

　　从10月9日开始，数百名新飞电器员工聚集在新飞电器总部门口，并拉出横幅：“涨工资，要生存，以理性救新飞”。10月10日、11日，新飞电器停工员工在新飞电器总部门口继续拉横幅，喊口号，并先后发出《告全体新飞同胞书》、《告全体新飞同胞书(二)》，其中前者，强烈要求“改善新飞员工收入，在制度天数内，使员工平均月收入达到2011年新乡职工平均月收入2160元！”“强烈要求公司董事会辨明忠奸，驱除无德、无能、无为的‘三无人员’”。“强烈要求公司董事会选拔德才兼备，富有远见的新飞带头人带领新飞浴火重生！”《告全体新飞同胞书(二)》则再次提出提高员工待遇，驱除“三无人员”、拯救新飞的要求。《告全体新飞同胞书(第3号)》则进一步要求提高福利待遇。

　　南都记者了解到，目前新飞电器管理层正与停工员工代表开始“谈判”。昨日下午，阮健平已经抵达新飞。据新飞电器内部员工透露，10日，员工代表与新加坡资方代表高管高嘉琳已经进行了第一轮谈判，参与谈判的管理层对于工资福利待遇提高，更换部分管理层等要求基本同意，而对于“要求总裁任命需经员工、资方和工会认可，这一条没表态。”不过，这也许是缓兵之计，“在其看来，与阮健平讨价还价达成一致，事件才可能解决。”

　　“如果谈判不成功，这些停工的人和管理人员就没有退路了，必须争取成功。”参与停工的工人向记者强调自己的理性，“场内(冰箱)一部安排24小时的巡逻，不许打砸抢，理性维权，也防止坏人挑拨。”而在“谈判”没有结果前，停工员工不会复工。

　　多年积怨

　　网络上近日流传着一段“新飞中层管理人员大会上遭员工扔鸡蛋”的视频。记者了解到，这正是这次停工事件的导火索。据新飞电器员工介绍，事情的起因是，新加坡资方计划将新飞电器月产能达到20万台的冰箱一部工厂关闭，撤出生产线，与生产二部为主的其他生产部门合并，而原有的许多生产一部的组长、段长、调度将被免职降薪。于是进行了一次合并沟通会，员工不满，于是向丰隆亚洲派来的人力资源部总监连国庆投掷鸡蛋。“到10月9日，发展到冰箱一部的员工开始停工。”

　　南都记者采访了解到，新飞电器参与停工的员工对于新加坡资方的不满情绪长期累积，认为资方不重视员工，比如高温作业，住宿条件差，长期不涨工资等等。有员工列出了一组数字：新飞安装温控表的车间淡季工资890元左右，旺季1200元左右。这远低于新乡市职工平均收入水平的2160元。“新飞员工的工资始终还停留在十几年前的水平”。

　　对于新飞电器的江河日下，员工也心生不满。在《告全体新飞同胞书》中，停工员工指出，自新加坡丰隆亚洲接手新飞电器以来，新飞电器的行业地位和市场份额急剧下跌，并指责“无德、无能、无为的管理层辜负股东和新飞人的信任，不加大新品开发和广告宣传，消极应对市场挑战，将经营不好的责任全部推给了市场和不利的经济形势”。

　　新飞电器是新乡市新飞集团和丰隆亚洲在1994年合资成立，2005年新加坡丰隆亚洲通过购买新飞集团持有的国有股股权，成为控股90%的大股东。

　　据新飞电器内部员工介绍，自从丰隆亚洲入主新飞以来，新飞高层的人事变动也频繁，目前新飞电器的高层基本都是丰隆亚洲方面的人，自从丰隆亚洲入主新飞以来，矛盾就没有间断过。而对于关停冰箱一部，参与停工人员就指，“这是资方的错误决定，关停一部是自毁长城。”

　　新飞一名员工悲观的表示，“其实谈判进展如何已经无关紧要了，只可能在这次施压之后丰隆方面会更快的把新飞卖掉，新飞或许还会活。”

　　雄鹰没落

　　靠冰箱起家的新飞电器成立于1984年，“新飞广告做得好，不如新飞冰箱好”的广告词曾经家喻户晓。上世纪90年代，新飞冰箱曾经被称为冰箱行业“四朵金花”之一，不过近年来，新飞

　　冰箱的市场份额却在逐步下滑。奥维咨询的研究报告称，今年上半年新飞销量同比下滑达37%。

　　自丰隆接手开始，业内关于新飞将被二次出售的传闻不断。新飞电器员工指公司市场营销、产品研发、品牌推广等方面陷入了发展停滞期，工厂产能开工率长期不足。

　　颇具讽刺意义的事，在停工之前的一个月，9月19日，新飞电器在上海宣布更换新品牌名称、标识及全新的品牌定位，新飞电器的新商标失去了以前老鹰形象和“新飞冰箱”四个字，换成了更有时尚感的“Frestec”以及飞翔的海鸥。彼时，阮健平还表示，新飞当前工作重心是从“中国驰名商标”的基础上发展成为全球认可的家电品牌。

　　南都记者昨走访了广州市内多家家电连锁，均没有发现新飞冰箱产品的任何踪影。广州国美岗顶店冰箱销售人员表示，新飞在该店没有销售柜台，如果要买新飞，只有从仓库调货。至于仓库中有哪些型号的产品，销售人员表示“不清楚”。

　　广州国美高层透露，新飞产品在广州国美铺货量不大，仅13家门店上样，走的也是低端路线，且型号不多，很难满足消费者对中高端冰箱的需求了；另外，新飞派驻人员非常少，因此在国美销售占比非常小。

　　广州苏宁天河店销售人员亦表示，该店很早就没有卖新飞产品了，一旁购买冰箱的消费者反问道，“现在还有新飞冰箱吗？我以为早就没有这个牌子了呢。”

　　苏宁内部人士表示，现在广州苏宁门店只有极少门店有新飞冰箱柜台，由于出货实在太少，无法统计新飞的销售占比。

　　数据显示，2011年，新飞冰箱总销量不足350万台，二线品牌奥马的销量已经达到460万台。来自新飞内部的消息指出，今年上半年新飞电器净利润为- 1 .18亿元，“去年亏损两个多亿，今年的亏损额也不会少于2个亿。”

　　2012年8月中国冰箱市场品牌关注比例分布

　　1、海尔34.8%

　　2、西门子19.1%

　　3、其他10.6%

　　4、美菱6.7%

　　5、松下4.9%

　　6、LG 4.8%

　　7、容声4.6%

　　8、三星4.4%

　　9、美的4.1%

　　10、海信3.1%


　　11、新飞2.9%

　　新飞大事记

　　1984年：新飞上马电冰箱，成立新飞电器

　　1994年：新加坡的丰隆亚洲作为战略伙伴开始入主新飞电器。

　　2005年：新加坡丰隆购买新飞股权，成为控股90%的大股东。

　　2009年：传出丰隆将以逾7亿美元的价格出售新飞。

　　2010年：先后有五位高管离职，新飞人与新加坡资方矛盾显露。

　　2012年：销量同比下滑达37%，市场份额已跌出国内品牌前五位。

　　2012年：在上海宣布更换新品牌名称、标识及全新的品牌定位。

　　2012年10月9日：数千名职工聚集在总部大门口，开始维权停工。

　　南都制图：刘寅杉

　　数据来源：互联网消费调研中心(Z D C)

　　南都记者 王海艳 汪小星 实习生 王婧妮

From Sina:

标识由鹰变鸥成新飞罢工导火索 外资股东丰隆不作为积怨日久

　　新飞电器和新飞集团在新飞品牌上的战略矛盾根深蒂固，劳资危机凸显外资丰隆与中方关系极其紧张

　　近日，新飞电器工人要求涨薪的罢工事件让在家电业惨淡背景下，已心力憔悴的新飞电器雪上加霜。

　　10月12日下午4时，新飞电器在河南紧急召开新闻发布会，经公司管理层、工会与员工磋商，与停工员工达成共识，劳资双方矛盾暂时平息。

　　据了解，此次外资方丰隆在满足涨薪要求的同时，一名老新飞生产制造部经理被“复官”，两名新加坡管理层人员被罢免，劳方承诺周一全面复工。

　　“劳资双方矛盾虽然在各方压力下暂时平息，但新飞电器和新飞集团在新飞品牌的战略矛盾上根深蒂固，外资丰隆与中方关系极其紧张，对立公开化。新飞意欲在新一轮冰箱升级中分得一杯羹并不容易。”家电业观察家刘步尘告诉记者。

　　公司称不会处罚罢工员工

　　中国冰箱业最早发源地之一的河南新乡市，因新飞电器罢工事件，再次受到外界关注。由于“10年没涨过工资”，10月9日，数千名职工举着已故新飞电器董事长刘炳银的照片，高喊“新飞危急”要求涨薪。

　　10月12日下午4时，新飞电器在河南紧急召开新闻发布会。

　　磋商之后，丰隆对员工涨薪诉求点头，并且重新聘用此前被免职的生产制造部总经理和强。人力资源部总监连国庆与生产制造部副总经理张伟添离开，工人最终答应复工。目前因涨薪事件而停工的生产车间已恢复生产。据了解，此次丰隆承诺员工工资两次上涨共500元，复工之后先涨300元，明年再涨200元。

　　“即便是涨薪500元，幅度也不大。新飞工人平均工资可以说只是新乡平均工资的二分之一，知名企业工人工资如此之少。通过此次危机事件，凸显新飞的劳资双方关系极其紧张，企业亏损严重。”一位当地人士这样看待此次事件。

　　新飞电器内部一位不愿具名高管人士告诉记者，目前由于薪资问题比较棘手，公司多次与工人进行沟通，最终工人得到比较满意的结果，已经复工。对于是否会对罢工领导者或参与者进行相应处罚，该人士告诉记者：“公司不会采取任何措施，更不会处罚工人。”

　　“此次由于涨薪事件引发的工人罢工对新飞产品的维修没有影响，其他部门工作均在有序进行。”记者致电新飞电器售后部门，相关负责人这样说道。

　　外资丰隆与中方关系紧张

　　据了解，此次新飞电器员工罢工事件已是积怨已久的一次爆发，而前不久新飞外资方丰隆的一次改标换制，成为激发中方从上到下不满的导火索。

　　今年9月19日，新飞电器在上海高调发布新英文商标，新飞新标识由雄鹰变成海鸥。

　　“新飞老鹰形象在老新飞人心里根深蒂固，怎么能轻易改变？”丰隆的此次变革，在新飞内部并不受到认可，且广受争议。上述新飞员工告诉记者：“新飞人不服。”

　　丰隆曾多次采取措施改变新飞品牌形象，然而产品上创新乏力，让新飞与海尔、西门子(微博)等高端品牌越来越远。三、四级市场萎缩，新飞的品牌影响力越发受限。同时，丰隆曾承诺的4亿元投资未能到位，使得原本元气大伤的新飞更是在冰箱高端产品升级大战中乏力。

　　如今，新飞翻身难上加难。2005年，中国冰箱行业“四大家族”海尔、新飞、科龙、美菱，在海信(微博)入主科龙、容声，长虹(微博)收购美菱之后，一夕间颠覆。海尔、海信等强势品牌占据市场大部分领地，美菱、科龙展开激战，新飞在冰箱排行榜已滑至十名开外。

　　“当年在新乡政府主导下，引进丰隆，一心想让新飞品牌发光，然而事与愿违，新飞电器江河日下。丰隆无心经营，与中方矛盾日益激化。”知情人士告诉记者。

　　“丰隆的决策在很多方面值得深思，新品开发力度减弱，新飞在高端媒体上的广告日趋减少，丰隆与中方从上到下的关系非常紧张，并不愿采取中方意见，管理层震荡不断，引发劳资矛盾。”家电业观察家刘步尘表示。

　　新旧新飞品牌“较劲”

　　新飞电器工人罢工事件发生之后，无论工人和新加坡股东方面都受到政府压力，劳资双方关系暂时缓和。刘步尘指出：“深层次问题还未解决。新飞意欲在新一轮冰箱升级中分得一杯羹并不容易。”

　　围绕“新飞”品牌的使用权和所有权，新飞集团和新飞电器之间多次发生碰撞，矛盾升级。2009年双方签订了新飞知识产权协议，新飞电器拥有“新飞”冰箱、洗衣机和空调产品的品牌使用权，“新飞”厨具等小家电产品的品牌使用权和所有权全部归新飞集团。

　　丰隆入驻新飞电器之后的不作为，让新飞集团不满意已久。新飞电器此次变“雄鹰“为”海鸥”改标换制，更是意欲把持新飞品牌，两个“新飞”剪不清理还乱。

　　刘步尘认为：“丰隆控制的新飞电器和新乡政府背景的新飞集团矛盾已经公开化，不能缓和，现在两者已经非常紧张。目前合约未到之前，新飞集团成立新公司还不能使用冰箱冰柜的标识。解决新飞根本问题，新飞电器和新飞集团应该尽快就两个公司未来发展取得一致意见，而不是对着干。”