Union hits 193m members, aims for 10m more

The mainland's top trade union boasted yesterday that 193 million people, or 71.5 per cent of the nation's employees, were under its umbrella and announced that it aimed to recruit 10 million more migrant worker members this year.

The All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU) has been urging foreign-funded and private companies to set up unions since 2006, in a bid to better protect workers in labour disputes, which have been rising by 20 per cent a year recently. It is also part of the federation's push to address international criticism of labour rights infringements and tighten party control over the booming world of commerce.

Federation vice-chairman Zhang Mingqi said in Beijing yesterday labour unions had been set up in 111,000, or 73.1 per cent of, overseas-funded companies, including those with investments from backers in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau.

The national trade union law says enterprises or institutions with 25 or more staff should establish trade unions. Less than 30 per cent of overseas-funded companies on the mainland had set up unions before July, 2006.

'We have set up labour unions in a lot of multinationals like Wal-Mart. The success has set good examples for other foreign companies,' Mr Zhang said.

Wal-Mart, the world's biggest retailer, bowed to two years of mainland pressure in July 2006 to set up a union in Fujian province , its first in the world.