Bowa staff demand job retention

Bowa Bank (寶華銀行) employees may go on strike if the debt-ridden bank's new buyer fails to agree to terms with the bank's employees, a labor union meeting said on Saturday.

The union demanded that the Central Deposit Insurance Corp (CDIC, 中央存保) -- which took over the bank's management in early August after Bowa failed to strengthen its capital base -- agree to terms with a new buyer that include a minimum 60 percent employee retention under a two-year contract before closing the auction on Jan. 31, a union representative said.

Of the bank's 1,100 employees, 810 attended Saturday's union meeting in Taipei and sanctioned the strike proposal, union head Jerry Hsieh (謝冠章) said in a telephone interview yesterday.

"Both Enterprise Bank of Hualien (花蓮企銀) and Taitung Business Bank (台東企銀), which were previously auctioned off by the CDIC, had a nearly 70 percent retention ratio while China United Trust and Investment's (中聯信託) employees all secured their jobs," Hsieh said.

The CDIC had previously suggested a 50 percent retention, but Hsieh said the bank's union would never accept such a high cut, adding that the security of employees' jobs is the union's topmost priority.

Other than the minimum 60 percent employee retention, the union requested that the new buyer make no changes to the retained employees' salaries and duties, with preferential compensations to those who are laid off, Hsieh said.

He did say, however, that the union hopes to use the strike as a last resort as escalating tension between bank employees and the new buyer may weigh on the bank's planned auction, which employees hope will lure as many bidders as possible.

State-owned Taiwan Business Bank (台企銀) failed to secure a new buyer because of an employee strike two years ago.

Hsieh said the Council of Labor Affairs (勞委會) had offered to negotiate the issue, but the CDIC had turned down their offer.

In related news, Standard Chartered PLC's (渣打銀行) labor union also approved a strike resolution on Dec. 15 and planned to go on an indefinite strike starting in the next two weeks if the bank did not meet their demands.

The Standard Chartered union was formed by employees who worked for Hsinchu International Bank (新竹商銀) before it was acquired by Standard Chartered.