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JES International blames sub-contractors for strike

JES International blames sub-contractors for strike
Singapore: JES International has blamed a strike by unpaid workers on sub-contractors, but also says its faces high working capital requirements.

The workers at the company’s yard in Jingjiang city went out on strike on Monday protesting that they had not been paid for as many as five to six months.

The Singapore-listed Chinese shipbuilder placed the blame for the strike squarely with its sub-contractors, saying it did not involve any of its direct employees. 

“The subcontractors usually employ workers from other province therefore it is a common practice that they defer the payments to its workers to ensure that these workers don’t leave their job without notice given which will eventually affect the workforce planning in the yard,” JES said.

It said the issue had been the issue had been “resolved promptly”.

The shipbuilder, however, also warned of cash crunch with over 20 vessels being currently built at its yard and customers seeking delivery delays, and that as a result its working capital could be high for short periods of time.

“Having said this, the board would like to assure that the group’s balance sheet is still healthy and the net gearing for the group is at 16.5% as at 30 September 2012 and thus, the group is in a good position to leverage on this and get additional capital, if required,” the shipbuilder said.