Vietnamese Happy Meal Toy Strike Over By MARGIE MASON, AP
The strike was widely reported in Vietnam's state-controlled media, which said the workers alleged that they were forced to work 12-hour days with no overtime and were allowed only 45 minutes for lunch. They also complained that their wages were cut if they visited the restroom more than twice a day or if a visit to the doctor took longer than two hours.
'In the company, there is no water for workers to drink, let alone water to wash after the shift ends,' a worker identified as Dang Thi Nhan T., told Tien Phong (Vanguard) newspaper. 'Many workers have fainted during working hours.'
The company has agreed to give the workers a 10 percent pay rise, limit their working hours to 10 hours daily, pay overtime, and give them Sunday off, said Thong, chairman of the city labor federation.
In a statement Thursday, Oak Brook, Illinois-based McDonald's Corp. said the company "takes these issues very seriously. We have a strict code of conduct for suppliers based on our belief that employees deserve to be treated with dignity and respect."