Do not take action against staff: China warns Wal-Mart

China has warned Wal-Mart not to take 'revengeful measures' against some of their local employees who have set up four trade unions over the past 10 days.

The warning was issued by the All-China Federation of Trade Unions on Wednesday. The federation, led by the ruling Communist Party of China and backed by the government, will take measures to protect these workers if they are revenged by Wal-Mart, director of the federation's grass-root building department, Guo Wencai said.

It is not allowed to replace trade unions with any organisation in other forms, the official was quoted as saying by Xinhua news agency.

Wal-Mart should not question the legality of these trade unions, Guo said, adding that under the Chinese law, it is compulsory for any company or institution with a staff of 25 or more to set up its own trade union.

According to some local media, a Wal-Mart spokesman questioned the legality of these trade unions by saying that the company had not been officially informed by the federation about the matter.

The federation has never made such a notice prior to the establishment of any of the existing more than 1.17 million grassroot trade unions across the country, Guo said.

Chinese media reported recently that the US-based retail giant has not allowed trade unions to function in its outlets worldwide. Thus, the trade unions at Wal-Mart units in China are reported to the first-ever in the company's history.

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