The local factories of the Ni yang Brothers Tobacco Ca,, Ltd, in East Seward Road and Broadway East, which closed on the eve of Chinese New Year (January 30) on account of excessive taxation, finan cial losses caused by the "silver slump, general business depression and constant labour troubles with Which they were unable to cope have officially been re-opened and business. resumed.
The factory has been operating since September 20 but the final decision to re-open was officially passed at a meeting of shareholders held in the company's head office Kast Seward! Road on September After the factories closed, the company went into voluntary liquidation but pressure was brought to bear by the Shanghai District ig and the Bureau of Social Affairs for Greater Shanghai to try to force the company to resume business and re-open its factories. Protests were made to the local and Nanking authorities and the workers demanded six months'
The latter were paid but the company remained adamant in its refusal to re-open its factories and resume business. Other branches of the company were not affected by the closure of the Shanghai factories, which followed the closing of the Pootung branch a few months previously.
The "North-China Daily New learned that the main reason for the closing of the factories, however, was the uncompromising attitude' of the Inbourers. Follow-the May 30 incident, a represent-ive of this paper was informed, the company's business reached the peak and 15,000 chests of cigarettes were produced monthly—but} business dropped until it was fouad that the demand did not exceed 5,000 chests monthly, At the peak of business, 3,000 workers were employed xo the company decided that it could use only 1,000 during, the slack season, The workers were notified that 2,000 would have to be dispensed with but the la-hour union, supported by the Shanghai District Kuomintang, insisted that all 3,000 workers should be Kept in service in spite of trade depression.
The payment of these employees, therefore, was the principal cause of the company's financial losses and, this being the case it was decided to close the factories in order to get rid of them.
Nevertheless, business has nut proved to a very great extent so far and it was decided yesterday to take back only 900° workers, When conditions improve, more of those thrown out of employment will be reinstated in cordance with an agreement reached with the Greater Shanghai Rureau of Social Affairs that preference shall be given to old workers when the company decides to re-open its factories. the meeting, Me. Kan Yuk-kai, president of the company, other directors present it Shenton Chow, Messrs. Lee Yuk-teng, Lee Chung-kuen, Chen Pu-yuan, Tseng Pei-min, Kan Ying-poo, G. Kwok Bew, Loo King-kee and Kan Ching-m
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.