Advertisement
Advertisement
Delivery guards went on strike in Guangzhou. Photo: SCMP

Strike by cash delivery guards disrupts bank operations in Guangzhou

Banking services were disrupted in Guangzhou yesterday when about 100 cash delivery guards went on strike in the morning following the accidental shooting death of a colleague at the weekend.

Banking services were disrupted in Guangzhou yesterday when about 100 cash delivery guards went on strike in the morning following the accidental shooting death of a colleague at the weekend.

The strike started at about 7am when the uniformed guards gathered outside the Guangzhou Sui Bao Escort & Convoy Company in Baiyun district with demands over "wages and weapon safety concerns", local media reported.

Sui Bao came under the spotlight on Saturday when a 26-year-old guard died from head injuries after a gun went off accidently while he was on duty. Police said the case was still under investigation, the reported.

Several bank branches across the city started running out of cash later in the day. Branches advised customers to call banks first to make sure the branches had enough cash on hand.

"We are running out of money," said a bank clerk at a China Citic Bank branch in Yuexiu district. "If Sui Bao can deliver banknotes tomorrow, the problems will be solved. Otherwise, we will have nothing."

An employee of Sui Bao declined to provide more details about the strike yesterday morning and denied that bank services had been suspended.

By the afternoon, the employee said both sides were "sitting down and negotiating" the problems.

Sui Bao is managed by the Guangzhou Public Security Bureau and employs more than 1,000 guards and 200 armed delivery trucks, according to the company's website.

A similar strike hit Zhongshan , southwest of Guangzhou, on December 3, when more than 500 delivery guards went on strike over "welfare and income problems".

The strike lasted several hours but a number of bank branches in the city were affected for several hours more.

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Guard strike disrupts deliveries of banknotes
Post