Toyota Hit by New Strikes in China;

Toyota and Honda have been dealing with recent labor strikes in several of their manufacturing plants in China. The latest wave of protests happened this week. Honda has dealt with strikes at their plants in Guangdong which have had no progress even though there was a deadline today for an agreement between workers and Honda. Pre-owned Toyota and Honda models such as the Accord and Camry can be purchased at a Kansas City MO used car lot.

Domestic manufacturers such as Ford, whose luxury Lincoln models can be purchased at a Grappone Lincoln dealer, and GM have had their own share of problems with the United Auto Workers union but have worked with them to reach agreements. Recent pressure in the United States against Toyota to allow their workers to unionize under the UAW was also underway this week.

China is facing the possibility of losing its image as a low cost source of skilled labor with the latest protests throughout the country. Manufacturers like Toyota and Honda are being faced with the reality of having to increase the wages and benefits of their Chinese workers.

However, some manufacturers have moved their plants to countries like Vietnam and Bangladesh to save money rather than appeasing Chinese workers. Although the cost of labor in China is relatively inexpensive, other overhead costs such as energy and water are increasing in price.

The government of China has been careful to censor coverage of the strikes throughout the country in order to ensure stability, but they also made it clear that they support the rights of the workers.

The China Communist Party called for higher worker wages while some called for better worker treatment. Beijing has allowed small coverage of worker grievances in the state media which suggests that the government might consider supporting worker rights.